


Storm in a Coffee Cup

by Hannahsolo01



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, F/F, Strangers to Lovers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-08
Updated: 2018-12-13
Packaged: 2019-07-28 06:20:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 25
Words: 30,804
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16235933
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hannahsolo01/pseuds/Hannahsolo01
Summary: On a snowy day in Portland, photography student Max Caulfield gets far more than she bargains for in a beautiful blue-haired punk named Chloe, master mocha maker. She's not quite ready for this storm to enter her life, but then again who's going to stop it?





	1. Snowglobe

**Author's Note:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.

**Chloe**

It was a cold December morning, the kind of morning with snow in the air. She wrapped her worn leather jacket just a little tighter around her torso as she paced through the streets of Portland. _I need a cigarette,_ yet the thought of moving her hand from where they were tucked safe and warm underneath her arms wasn’t worth anything, not even her nicotine fix.  
After an hour of walking from her crummy apartment on the edge of the city, she reached her destination, the small café where she worked 3 mornings a week. Bracing herself for the cold, Chloe dug out her phone from her pocket. 7:45, good, she had time before opening up.  
Without a second thought she retrieved her cigarettes from her pocket and lit one up, allowing herself to relish in the taste of the smooth smoke, she closed her eyes and allowed her self to relax before the day began. _Fuck._

**Max**

Max Caulfield’s alarm clock blared for the third time that morning, and she hit snooze. Again. Soft, grey light peaked between the drapes on her dorm room window basking the tiny room in cool brightness. It was a Tuesday, the one day a week when Max didn't have class, the day she usually dedicated to becoming truly re-acquainted with her bed.  
Yet, this Tuesday was different, she had a week until the first deadline for submitting a piece for assessment at college, and still had no idea where to even begin. 3 months after moving to Portland and starting her degree in photography, she was still struggling to find her feet. She had a small group of friends but nobody particularly close. Her lack of close personal relationships had never bothered her, however, in her new home, the city made Max feel...alone.  
Feeling the unwelcome pit of melancholy dragging her down, Max forced herself to spring out of bed and get out into the world. She threw on a pair of skinny jeans, a white tee and her chucks and grabbed her camera.

**Chloe**

The clock had just hit 9 when Rachel sauntered into the café.

“Jesus Rach, nothing like cutting it fine,” Chloe remarked to the blonde, who had somehow managed to look like the picture of perfection despite the insane storm whipping outside.  
“Good morning to you too Chloe,” Rachel replied as she hung up her jacket on the coat hooks by the door, “anyways, it's not like you’re rushed off your feet, anybody would have to be insane to voluntarily come out for coffee in this shitstorm.”

Rachel wandered into the back to grab her apron and dump her bag when the bell above the door chimed.


	2. Short Stuff

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.

**Max**

 

This was a very bad idea. Initially Max thought that the snow would make for some cool shots but she very quickly realised that frostbite couldn’t be justified for anything, even Professor Jefferson.

A bitingly cold gust of wind shot up behind Max and she yelped quietly, she was going to have to find somewhere warm to hole up until this passed. As if destiny heard her internal plea, she spotted a tiny coffee shop nestled between a dry cleaners and a thrift store, that she would never have normally noticed if it wasn’t for her moment of desperation. Max bolted over to the café, hoping that it was open.

Thanking dog that the door was open, she entered the tiny building and took in the space. It was exactly what Max expected from a Portland coffee shop, bare brick walls and exposed pipework with vintage style lighting fixtures and comfortable leather couches. On any other day it would no doubt be filled with student hipsters taking shots for their instagrams, but of course today it was completely empty, who would be crazy enough to come out in a storm like this?

A hearty laugh sounded out from Max’s right, she looked over to the counter where a woman was stood, and Max was immediately taken aback.

The woman was easily half a foot taller than Max’s 5’2”, slim, with skin the colour of porcelein except for the colourful tattoo that snaked up her right arm, exposed by her distressed tank top. She had a black apron tied around her waist and a necklace holding three gold bullets hanging around her neck. Max drew her eyes up to the woman’s face and bit her lip.  _ Wowser. _

A cocky smirt was painted on her lips and her dark-rimmed, vibrant blue eyes were glistening with mischeif. There was a piercing in her lip, her left eyebrow and a thin silver band through her nostril, she cocked her head, disturbing the mess of blue hair that framed her beautiful face, and scratched her head over her dark blue beanie.

 

“You okay there, short stuff?” a deep, raspy voice interrupted her ogling, bouncing with humour.

“Um..oh yeah. I..um..weathers just…”

“Crazy, right? You’d have to be insane to be out voluntarily in this shitstorm.”

 

**Chloe**

 

_ Fuck me.  _ Chloe couldn’t quite believe her luck, the cutest little thing had just walked straight into the coffee shop to brighten her shitty morning. She just couldn’t help herself from teasing the girl, who looked like a deer in the headlights in front of Chloe, by repeating Rachel’s words from just a moment ago. Chloe got it, she knew she was intimidating, and the brunette was giving off intense shy, hipster vibes.

“Hey Chlo! Have you seen my... oh fuck, didn't expect anyone out this morning!” Rachel came bounding around the corner, interrupting the stare down Chloe was having with the cute chick.

“Yeah...the call of the coffee is just too great, right?” Chloe directed at the short brunette, who just laughed softly in response.

Rachel looked between the two girls suspiciously before turning to Chloe, 

“Have you seen my phone anywhere? I think I forgot it at home.” Rachel said quickly and frustratedly.

“Nah man, no sign of it here. You could go back and check, I don't mind holding the fort for a while,” Chloe said while turning and filling the grinder with fresh coffee beans.

“Chloe Price, what would I do without you?”

 

**Max**

 

The beautiful blonde threw on her stylish military jacket, kissed… erm Chloe, apparently?... on the cheek and sauntered out of the cafe. Max wondered what it was about this coffee shop that meant all of its staff had to look like they’d just stepped out of a magazine.

It wasn’t the beauty of the blonde that lingered in Max’s mind however, she was instead concentrating on how irritated that kiss made her.  _ Max, are you cereal? You just met this chick, if you can even call it a meeting. Of course the sexy punk girl has a girlfriend. _

 

“So what’ll it be? If you’re looking for suggestions, I have it on good authority that my mochas are hella awesome.” Chloe’s voice once again interrupted her deep thoughts.

“Um...yeah, sure, that would be um… great.” Max stumbled over her words as she approached the counter, which was laden with piles of delicious, looking pastries and sandwiches. Her stomach grumbled in response.


	3. Master Mocha Maker

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.

**Chloe**

 

“Wowser,” The tiny brunette muttered under her breath, patting her stomach. Chloe smirked as she filled a metal jug with milk,  _ this girl is just the cutest.  _

“Wow, haven’t heard that one in a while. We’ll sort that belly out though, Rach just pulled some croissants out of the oven, want one?” Chloe’s offer was totally out of the kindness of her heart, no ulterior motives whatsoever, she swore.

The shorter girl’s eyes grew wide and she nodded her head eagerly,

“Drool, yes please” she replied with vigour.

Chloe turned into the small kitchen at the side of the espresso machine and emerged almost immediately with two steaming croissants on one plate, before placing them on the counter.

She finished up with the coffee, flourishing it with a pretty leaf pattern in the foam.  _ Hey, I might as well make an effort, these artsy types appreciate it. _

“One mocha for the pretty lady, I’ll come sit with you, I haven’t eaten breakfast yet either,” It wasn’t a total lie, she hadn’t eaten, although she had consumed her usual breakfast, a cigarette. 

 

**Max**

 

_ Pretty.  _ Chloe’s words hadn’t escaped Max’s attention, and she was sure that her blush hadn’t escape Chloe’s either, she quickly turned her head away and headed to one of the wooden tables behind her, clutching her mocha tightly.

Chloe threw herself down in the leather chair opposite Max, and Max noted the casual, smooth way her body seemed to move, like she owned everything around her, and the world didn't phase her at all. 

“So then, what's your actual name? I bet it's something quirky and hipster-y like Juniper or Clover or some shit,” Chloe’s spoke through a mouthful of french pastry,

“Right. You look like the cover of hipstergirl.com.” Max replied, gaining a little more confidence to play with Chloe in the way she was playing with her.

Chloe threw her head back and belly-laughed, and Max thought about just how beautiful she looked in that moment.

“Touche, short stuff, touche. But for real, what is it, you’re killing me here?”

“Maxine, but Max, never Maxine.” Max replied, sipping on her delicious mocha,

“Well Max, never Maxine, I’m Chloe, master mocha maker.” 

Chloe extended her arm out to Max, who shook her ring-laden hand in greeting,

“I have to say, you’re right there, this mocha is indeed ‘hella awesome’” Max giggled, unsure if it was the caffeine or the sugar that was making her giddy.

“Why thank you, nice to know I’m good for something.”

“You definitely are, I think this place will become one of my daily rituals” Max realised that her beverage was almost drained now, she couldn’t help but drink the sweet substance.

“Oh, for sure, Mad Max, this stuff is worse than crack, believe me.” Chloe winked and Max flushed.

 

**Chloe**

 

_ Jesus, this chick is getting me so wound up.  _ Chloe's boot-clad feet tapped under the table, she suddenly felt happier than she had in a long time, practically bursting with energy. Her phone vibrated in her back pocket, Rachel was calling her.

“Hey Rach, found your phone I assume,”

“Yeah, but honestly Chlo, I’m not making it back this morning, this weather isn’t slowing and I’m not risking breaking my arm again,”

“Dude, you were ten, when are you gonna get over that?”

“Shut up.”

Chloe looked out of the window for the first time that morning,  _ hey, I was distracted,  _ and saw the snow had risen higher, almost blocking the door to the cafe.

“Holy shit, on second thoughts, you stay there, I’m sure my mom won’t mind me shutting up early,”

“Good idea, just lock up and leave, nobody else will come in now anyway,”

“Yeah I just gotta get rid of Max first,”

“Who’s Max? Wait… Oh… Max, eh?”

“Now you shut up,”

“Okay, well, don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.” Chloe could hear the smirk in her voice.

“Yeah, great advice thanks.”

 


	4. Sweet Jesus, Holy Mother of Fuck

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.

**Max**

 

Three mochas down, the snow was beginning to slow off. And Max decided that she would brave the weather and set off home, thinking that if she spent much more time talking shit with Chloe, she wouldn’t be responsible for her actions. Max had been sat alone at the table for around fifteen minutes, her nose buried in a beaten copy of  _ The October Country _ she’d borrowed from the bookshelf at the back of the coffee shop.

“Enjoying it?” Chloe emerged from the kitchen, no longer wearing her apron, instead sporting a worn leather jacket, that was just about her personified.

“It's great so far. I didn't realize Bradbury was such a poet,” Max replied with enthusiasm,

“Nerd.” Chloe retorted, placing a cigarette between her lips.  _ Dog, those lips, what I wouldn’t give to be that cigarette right now. Pull yourself together girl! _

 

“You ready to jet? Unless you want to stay and lock up? Be warned though, that means you have to mop,” Chloe said nonchalantly as she rifled through a huge bunch of keys she had somehow managed to fit in her pocket,

“Yeah I’m ready, thanks for the coffee, it was great,” Max laid a twenty down on the table, too shy to ask for a cheque,

“And the book, I’ll have to buy a copy,”

“Nah keep that one, no-one ever reads those things anyways.”

 

**Chloe**

 

She watched as Max turned the corner of the street and disappeared out of view.  _ Thank fuck, she won’t be able to see my meltdown. _

Chloe’s fingers trembled as they clutched onto her half-smoked cigarette, she told herself it was the cold, but the intense adrenaline that was rushing through her from her morning spent with a pretty, sweet girl couldn’t be denied. 

“Sweet Jesus, holy mother of fuck.” Chloe exclaimed to herself, her breath showing as it pushed into the cold air. She couldn’t fathom what this girl had done to her in just two short hours, she felt like her head was spinning.

 

After, the painfully long walk back to her apartment, Chloe slumped down on her sofa-bed, the blanket still crumpled from sleep the night before. She looked around the room, taking in the space, noticing things. The videogame controllers strewn at the foot of the bed, the American flag that acted as a makeshift curtain, the  _ Arcadia Bay- Oregon  _ ashtray that was in serious need of emptying. And although this was all exactly the same as it had been for two years since she moved to Portland, somehow, Chloe felt different.

 

**Max**

 

After returning to her dorm, Max had thrown herself into studying, telling herself that if she didn't use her one day off working on her portfolio, she’d never get it done. Once she felt she’d made a reasonable dent in her workload, Max gave up, calling for a pizza and settling down on her sofa. 

The events of the day came flooding back to her, and she thought about Chloe for the first time since returning home.  _ Chloe.  _ The thought made her heart flutter, among  _ other things,  _ and she reached into her satchel to pull out the book the punk had gifted to her. Reading was something that was near and dear to Max, and she had always thought that if photograpy hadn’t stolen her heart, she would’ve been a writer, perhaps it was something about artistic expression,  _ jeez, Chloe wasn’t wrong about me being a nerd, or a hipster. _

Upon opening the front cover, Max noticed something, she hadn’t seen previously, a note was scrawled in the top right of the cover page.

 

_ Hey Super Max, _

_ Hit me up for some more sick java. _

_ (503) 555-0311 _

_ Chloe, MMM _

 

_ Okay Max, don't freak out. This doesn’t mean anything, she probably just wants to hang as friends. When did she even write that in there? Plus, pretty sure she has a girlfriend, a stunning, blonde girlfriend. _

Nevertheless, it was almost an involuntary action as Max started typing out a text to Chloe, nervous and unsure of what to say, she figured after a while, she had to start somewhere, right?

 

**Max- Hey, this is Max:)**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This has been brewing in my head for a while, it's nice to see such a warm reception so soon after putting it out. We're just getting started so I hope you guys stick around for the ride :) (NO EMOJI)


	5. Beer's Intellectual

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.

**Chloe**

 

Chloe ran a hand through her hair, now a darker blue, damp from her shower, and grinned at her phone. She had been texting back and forth with Max for the last 3 hours, mostly about the weather, and their morning and nothing in particular. But the exchange was still making Chloe feel like a teenager again,  _ wow Price, you’re crushing hard. _

 

**Chloe: Hey so I got some beers in**

**Chloe: And the snows kinda melting now**

**Chloe: So if you wanna join? You’re welcome**

 

_ Fuck, did that sound too desperate? Or obvious? I need to get a fucking grip. _

Chloe couldn’t get the girl out of her mind, she was thinking about the way her chopped, chestnut hair framed her face, the hella adorable freckles peppered across her nose, and her bright blue eyes, that burned with intensity and enthusiasm.  _ Just fucking listen to yourself Chloe. _

 

**Max: Sounds good to me (^_^)**

**Max: Text me your address, I’ll be there around 8?**

 

She’s so fucking adorable.

 

**Chloe: It's Apartment 44, Mariposa House, Cedar Ave.**

**Chloe: and NO EMOJI**

 

**Max**

 

_ Holy shit. Holy Shit. HOLY SHIT.  _ Max’s heartbeat skyrocketted the closer the clock ticked to 8pm. She was certain Chloe had asked her to her apartment purely out of boredom, or as a friendly gesture. She opened the mini fridge in her room, pulling out the bottle of wine she had left over from her birthday,  _ this will have to do. _

She stared at herself in the mirror, taking in her plain face, plain hair and plain clothes. She changed out of the white t-shirt she had worn that morning and instead donning a black tee with a butterfly motif on the front. Deciding this looked slightly better, she grabbed her hoodie and took off out of the door.

 

**Max: Hey, I’m on my way**

**Chloe: Awesome Sauce**

**Chloe: But it's already 8, you’re running late**

**Max: The more I txt, the longer I take**

 

The snow had melted to slush by now, but the air was still bitterly cold. Max pulled up googlemaps and made her way on the 17 minute walk to Chloe’s apartment, the chilled wine tucked under her arm.

_ Remember, Max, nothing is going to happen. _

 

**Chloe**

 

Chloe looked around her tiny, two room apartment, starting to freak out about how messy it was.  _ She’s gonna hate this.  _ Chloe settled on throwing most of the clutter into her empty kitchen cabinets, making up the sofa bed-  _ this is ridiculous, what twenty two year old doesn’t even have a real bed? _

She put four bottles of Budweiser in the fridge and fussed with her hair for the fifth time in the last 15 minutes. She’d already decided to ditch her beanie for the evening, thinking that she was gonna be hot enough in such close proximity to Max.

After smoothing out the blankets on the futon, she went back to playing the videogame she had been for most of the day.  _ I need to take my mind off how fucking nervous I am right now. _

 

**Max: I think I’m outside, mind buzzing me in?**

**Chloe: Sure thang**

 

Impossibly fast, Chloe bounded to the door and pressed the buzzer, lingering close to the door in anticipation.

A timid knock sounded from the door and Chloe told herself to be cool as she opened the door and leant against the door frame.


	6. Socks

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.

**Max**

 

“Hey super Max,”

Chloe exuded casual charm as she stood in front of Max, leaning on the door jam. Max noticed how her hair framed her elfin face, free from the beanie now. Another thing she now noticed was that her hair was purple at the root, with just a little strawberry blonde starting to peek through. She was wearing the same tank top and jeans combo that she had been earlier at the coffee shop, but now her boots were gone, replaced by feet clad in mismatched socks.

 

“Hey, I brought wine!” Max replied holding up the bottle and giggling,

“Oh fancy! You better not be trying to get me drunk.” Chloe replied and winked,

“Welcome to my humble abode.”

 

Max took the room in, a tiny kitchenette lay to her right as she entered, with coffee cups and beer bottles piled next to the sink. In front of her was a sofa bed, covered in mismatched pillows and a blanket, facing a TV. Behind her was a window covered with an American flag next to a small wooden door that max assumed lead to the bathroom. As she looked around, she noticed the walls were covered with posters and graffiti, with phrases like ‘ _ I CAN’T SLEEP’  _ and ‘ _ TRUST NO ONE’  _ scrawled on the walls. The place was so Chloe.

 

“The place is nice,” Max remarked, wandering in.

“Home shit home.”

 

**Chloe**

 

“Well, make yourself comfy. I’ll get us some drinks,” Chloe said as Max perched on the edge of the bed, seeing Max here was strange. Chloe couldn’t fathom what it was, but having Max in this space put her on edge, not that she’d show it though.

She returned to Max’s side clutching two open beers, plonking down on the bed and taking a long pull from her bottle, before placing it on the floor by her side.

 

“So whatcha playing?” Max began, noticing the open video game on the TV screen,

“Something about cars or speed or something, here. You a gamer?” Chloe held out the console controller to Max,

“Yeah, sure,” Max scoffed, “a bad one.” But she took the controller anyway.  _ How hard can it be? Maybe I can impress her with my mad gaming skills. _

 

It was approximately 4 seconds after taking the controller, Chloe knew it was a mistake handing it over. Max was awful

 

“Fuck sister, no offence, but you’re awful,” Chloe said as Max crashed into yet another pedestrian,

“Honest to dog, if you think this is bad, you should see my actual driving.” Max replied, throwing down the controller in frustration.

“Now let me show you how it’s done.”

 

**Max**

 

After a few hours of admiring Chloe’s insane video game skills, Chloe decided to give up, switching the TV to some mindless reality show.

 

“So Mad Max, what is it you do when you’re not sucking at video games?” Chloe decided to open up conversation, lying on her side facing Max,

“I’m a photography student at UP, moved down here last year from Seattle, what about you? I mean i already know about the master mocha making of course…” Max nursed her beer bottle,

“Well mostly, my life is dipped in shit. I moved here from a tiny town called Arcadia Bay, like a couple of years ago with Rachel, she’s my best friend from high school,”  _ Best friend, not girlfriend? _

“Arcadia Bay? God, I begged by parents to let me go to Blackwell Academy, their photography program was one of the best in the country,” Max’s eyes lit up as she talked,  _ and I could have met you sooner. _

“Ha! You wouldn’t have liked it so much if you were there!” Chloe scoffed, 

“You went? No way! What did you do there?”

“Got kicked out, mostly.”

Max had noticed that Chloe’s sock-clad foot was now leaning against her own, she couldn’t concentrate on anything Chloe was saying, just on that small area where their bodies were touching.

“So why move here?”

Chloe took a deep breath,

“I didn’t have a great time in Arcadia, it was a shit pit and I couldn’t wait to get out. Rach and I always wanted to escape, we had dreams of just leaving and never looking back… One night, we were ready to go, but, some fucked up shit went down with her family, that I won’t go into right now. Anyways, all of our plans were on hold for a few years, Rach graduated from Blackwell and we decided it was our time. My mom used to work at the local diner in town but she decided that Arcadia Bay wasn’t enough for her either I guess so she sold the house and is touring the country with my step-prick.” Chloe’s eyes had glassed over as she discussed her past,

“With the money from the house, my mom bought the coffee shop for me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope everyone's enjoying these new chapters, we're getting a little more into the nitty gritty now. Guess I should let you guys know that this is kind of a based upon my own experience this summer, so if anything seems a little weird, that's probably why. Anyways, please leave me some feedback on what you thought!


	7. Cigarette Theory

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.

**Chloe**

 

“Wow, that’s amazing! She sounds awesome,” Max sat up in amazement,

“Yeah she is, I think she wanted me to get out, and have a creative outlet that didn’t involve petty crime. It's a shame she has a hella bad taste in men.” 

Chloe sat up, something about talking about her past put her on edge, she needed a cigarette to bring her back down to earth.

She was still questioning Max’s interest. Sure, she came over to her place, sure, she’s been texting her all day, and she seemed to be ejoying the subtles touches they were exchanging. Chloe looked over to where her cigarettes were sitting on the bedside cabinet next to Max.  _ Hmmm maybe this is an opportunity to test my theory. _

Chloe sat up next to Max, extending her body over her and reaching over Max to retrieve the half empty pack of cigarettes. Taking more time than what was necessary, she looked down at Max, who looked like a doe in the headlights, who’s wide eyes were focused on Chloe’s breasts where they sat in front of her face. The electricity was tangible in the air.

Returning back to her previous position, Chloe smirked to herself,  _ well I think that answered my question. _

Lighting up her cigarette, she looked to her left,

“Earth to Max, you okay over there?” 

 

**Max**

 

_ I don’t think I can breathe. _

“Hello? Max?” Chloe waved her hand in front of Max’s face.

“What...uh...hi…” Max said, blinking herself out of her daydream,  _ we won’t go into too much detail about what was going on in said daydream. _

“You are so cute.” Chloe placed one arm behind her head and took a long drag on her cigarette with the other, blowing the smoke up into the air,

“You don’t mind me smoking do you? I never asked,”

“It’s your place Chloe, of course I don’t mind.” In fact Max didn’t mind, not one bit, in fact, watching Chloe smoke was doing all kinds of things to her.

The clock was ticking on, time was passing impossibly fast in Chloe’s company. 

 

Max was feeling kind of buzzed after the few beers she had consumed over the last couple of hours, and it showed as she fell off the bed when she got up to use the restroom. Which of course Chloe found hilarious.

 

“I’m glad my clumsiness amuses you,” Max remarked, stumbling back onto her feet.

“You’re hella drunk, Caulfield, nothing to do with clumsiness,” Chloe said once her giggling fit calmed down,

“You can’t blame me, I’m not used to drinking like this, or at all in fact.”

“Why? Is this when you tell me you’re a recovering alcoholic or some shit?” Chloe teased,

“Nope, just nineteen.”

 

**Chloe**

 

Chloe could tell Max was apprehensive about sharing her age, but couldn’t understand why, it was only three years difference, but she did see this as a way to have a little fun.

“Oh, yeah? So now you’re telling me I’ve been enabling underage drinking?”

That deer in the headlights look returned to her face,

“No...erm...Chloe, I’m….sorry. I know I should have told you…”

Chloe thought about stopping her rambling for a little while before actually stopping it,

“Dude, you should have seen your face! Nah it’s cool, I dig being the hot older chick.” Chloe was doubled over laughing again,

“Don’t do that to me, you ass!” Max scolded, on her way to the bathroom.  _ Damn, she’s even cuter when she’s angry. _

 

After Max returned from the bathroom, they made a start on the wine, sharing anecdotes and laughing about stupid geeky references they found they had a common interest in.

 

A lengthy debate about which Doctor was the best followed, until the tacky frog clock on the wall informed the two women that it was midnight.

“Wow, I really better get going,” Max yawned and began to sit up,

“Or…” Chloe began “You could always crash here?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Get ready for tomorrow's chapter... It's a big one;)


	8. Wowser

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.

**Max**

 

“Are you sure?” Max said, afraid that her face was betraying her badly disguised excitement.

“Oh yeah,” Chloe replied, eyes sparkling, “hella sure.”

The bullshit reality show played on in the back ground, but neither girl’s attention was in any way focused on that. They were both lied on their sides now, Max on her right, Chloe on her left, staring into each other’s eyes, their legs entangled together. 

Max wasn’t thinking about anything, other than how beautiful Chloe looked. Her face void of the mischief that always painted her features, instead replaced by calm, she was simply studying Max’s features.

The two of them remained in that position for what seemed like hours, or maybe it was just minutes, time didn’t apply to them in that moment.

_ Kiss me, kiss me, kiss me.  _

She was pleading with her eyes, longing to know how Chloe’s lips would feel on her own, and, overcome with a new confidence, she knew Chloe wanted to kiss her too.

 

_ Fuck it. _

 

**Chloe**

 

Max propped herself up on her elbow, leant over, holding Chloe’s face with her free hand and pressed her lips to hers. 

Chloe was taken aback, surprised for some reason, eventhough the last hour of staring at each other had clearly been leading to this. She found herself unable to keep her head straight, melting into the kiss.

Their tongues tangled together and Chloe placed her hand on Max’s hip, holding her tightly and leaning over Max.

In that moment, Chloe saw it all, Max making breakfast in her crummy apartment; coming to meet her after her shifts at the coffee shop; taking pictures of the two of them together, and she wanted it all.  _ Fuck Chloe, nothing like getting ahead of yourself. _

Chloe broke the kiss, leaning her head against Max’s, needing a moment to breathe, the intensity of emotion proving to be almost too much.

“Damn Max, you’re hardcore,” Chloe chuckled, teasing gently,

“You’re such a dork.” Max replied, kissing her again.

 

**Max**

 

The sun was peaking through the window, coloring the room with red and blue as it shone through the flag hanging above the window. Max rubbed the sleep from her eyes, overcoming the brief moment of surprise that comes with waking up in a new place. 

Remebering the events of the night before, Max looked over to her right, to the taller woman sleeping beside her.  _ Wowser. _

Chloe’s lips were slightly parted and she was snoring softly, her long eyelashes rested on her cheeks, still coated in last night’s mascara, blue strands of hair scattered almost artfully across her sleeping face. Max’s hands itched to reach up and touch her face, which was completely peaceful now, for the first time since Max’s first meeting her.

Max’s need to take a picture of this moment suddenly over-ruled her senses and she reached down to grap her instant camera from her bag.

_ Always remember this moment.  _ She held up her camera to take a picture of herself next to a sleeping Chloe.

“Photo bomb!” Chloe woke up with a start, leaning over and wrapping her arms around Max, who instinctively leant ito her embrace.

“Photohog.” Max remarked snapping the selfie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Going to let you guys fill in the blanks about what you think happened there...


	9. Ripples

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.

**Chloe**

 

“Well someone is glowing this morning.” Rachel entered the cafe with the same cool grace with which she did everything, there was a sarcastic edge to her voice, an edge that Chloe knew all too well. 

The thing was that Rachel knew Chloe as well, and she knew that she had met someone that had gotten under her skin, and maybe forced a few cracks in that impenetrable tough exterior. Rachel was wary of new people, it was a by-product of the shit she had had to deal with throughout her life, and Chloe knew that the idea of her entering a close, intimate relationship with somebody new would make that inevitable. Plus Chloe’s tight relationship with Rachel always seemed to be the downfall of any possible relationships she’d had in the past, she only hoped Max would be different.

“Yeah, yeah, leave it outside. I slept well.” Chloe replied jovially, hoping to turn the conversation to positivity.

“Wow, she must have been some lay.” Rachel said flippantly, tying her hair into a ponytail,

“Hey Rach, not cool okay?”  _ Wow, she is bitchy this morning. _

“Someone has finally brought the great womanizer Chloe Price to her knees? Someone call CNN, this is world-changing news, she must have been a  _ really  _ good lay.” This was the finally straw.

Chloe slammed the coffee cup she was holding down on the counter.

“Rachel, seriously? I said fucking stop! What the fuck crawled up your ass and died this morning? I don't need your input in this, okay?”

Chloe was struggling to figure the whole thing out, but it had never been her strong suit really, figuring other people out. She consistantly felt guilty, mainly when it came to Rachel, for not seeing when she was hurting somebody else, which apparently was all the fucking time.

“Whatever, I don’t need this shit. I just came to grab some stuff, I got Eliot to cover my shift today, he should be here in 10.” With that, Rachel left the coffee shop.

 

**Max**

Max crouched down, almost underneath the park bench to get the perfect angle of the swan on the lake. The late morning sun bounced off each individual ripple of water that the swan left in its wake, catching Max’s eye and camera lens perfectly, and she took the shot. The sound of the shutter was one of Max’s favourite sounds in the world, which was now almost paralleled with that of Chloe’s soft breath as she slept.  _ Woah, slow down Romeo. _

Max took the moment of tranquility to reflect on the morning. Chloe had woken up at the ass-crack of dawn to go to work, explaining that she had started to work more mornings in the last few weeks. She had taken Max back to her dorm in her truck,  _ again, the embodiment of Chloe,  _ and she was surprised it even made it the five minute car ride. Chloe had kissed her cheek before driving back in the direction of the city.

Call it fate or destiny or whatever, but Max finally had a revelation about her portfolio, deciding on a range of photographs that displayed various ideas on the butterfly effect, certain thing’s impact upon other things, and how far that can spread. Her first picture was focussed on ripples…

Max had been a no-good, very bad student and decided to skip her morning class in favour of fullfilling this sudden revelation, and so far it was going very very well. It helped that the artist was happy.

She had, consciously or unconsciously, been making her way closer and closer to the coffee shop, and before she knew it she was across the street. Only to see a very pissed looking Rachel storming out of the door.

 

**Chloe**

 

Chloe was more resigned to Rachel’s behaviour than actually pissed at her, she’d just come to expect this shit from her now, and honestly, she just felt shitty that her best friend might be slipping away from her. She was wiping down one of the kitchen counters when the bell above the door chimed,

“Hey miss, how can I help you?” Eliot all but fucking screeched,  _ man, that guy is way too chipper. _

“Hi, erm… I’m just here to see Chloe?” A familiar sweet, raspy voice rung out in the half-empty cafe, causing Chloe to stand up straight with surprise, knocking over three bowls and hitting her head on a cabinet on her way up, causing a fair amount of noise.

“Fuck!” Chloe exclaimed, loud enough to alert the attention of every customer in the place.

“In fact, don’t worry, I think I found her.” Max chuckled, in response to Chloe’s outburst,

“Hey, shut up.” Chloe said to Max as she rounded the corner behind the counter, rubbing her head over her beaning, a touch of a smile crinkling the corner of her eyes.

“Are you okay Chloe? Do you need ice?” Eliot said, all over Chloe,  _ of course. _

“Yeah I’m cool, don’t even worry about it dude, could you um… just make two mochas okay?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so I'm adding a little more depth to Rachel, she's gonna be pretty important to the story so don't hate her just yet, or do, that's up to you guys i guess;)  
> There's more to the story of Rachel and Chloe that we gotta lay down before we can really get super into Chloe and Max, right?  
> Anyways, hope you guys enjoyed and I'll get to work on the next one ^_^


	10. The Wrong Tree

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.

**Max**

 

Max crinkled her nose as she sipped on her mocha, the extremely bitter taste of too much coffee preventing her from enjoying it.

“It's shit right?” Chloe laughed, sat on the work surface in the tiny coffee shop kitchen, long legs swinging,

“Yeah, he is definitely no master in the mocha making department.” Max replied, and placed the cup down on the counter.

“How was your morning? I’m surprised you’re back here already, couldn’t get enough of me, eh?” Chloe said with a wink,

“It was great, I finally started work on my portfolio,”

“Oh yeah? Can I see?” Chloe hopped off the counter eagerly, to Max’s surprise and delight, she liked that Chloe was interested in her photography,

“Sure, here.” The girls spent the next ten minutes or so discussing Max’s new photos, Max was happy for the outside opinion, and Chloe was glad for the distraction from the Rachel drama that morning.

“Hey kiddo, imma have to go do some actual work now, you're welcome to stay as long as you want though,” Chloe said reluctantly after a little while,

“No, it's cool, I have a class in 30 minutes anyway. You erm… busy tonight?” Max said, shyly,

“Uh actually, yeah I am, sorry, I’ve gotta go see Rachel. But tomorrow? We could hang out? Even go for a few drinks, what do you say?” Max tried her absolute hardest not to appear disappointed, even though she was.

“You forgetting something, Price? Nineteen remember?” Max reminded,

“Don't worry cutie, it's all about who you know.”

 

Max left the coffee shop and begun the walk to campus, putting her, surely uncalled for, jealousy towards Rachel to the back of her mind.  _ They’re best friends, idiot. And you’ve known Chloe for a day. A day. _

It felt longer than a day, it felt like something was pulling them together and now that they were, pulling them a part would be far more difficult than either of them could anticipate. Sometimes, when you meet someone who’s going to change your life, you just know.

 

**Chloe**

 

Chloe felt like a royal ass for blowing off Max’s offer to get together that night, she really wanted to, but she knew that the Rachel situation needed to be fixed now before it got any worse, she didn’t want to add fuel to the fire. Seeing Rachel that night was the only way to calm her down, Chloe was sure of it.

Chloe threw herself into work and before she knew it, it was approaching 3:30, and she was starting to shut up shop. She cleaned up the kitchen and sorted the cash out from the till, before returning to see Eliot placing the chairs and stools up on the tables. 

“Hey man, you can jet if you want, I’m cool to lock up.” In all honesty, Eliot gave Chloe the creeps, and if she could limit the time they had to spend alone together, she definitely would.

Eliot had worked at the coffee shop since it opened, answering an ad her Mom had put in the paper, and he had been all over Chloe like a rash the moment he met her.  _ I’m still not sure if he gets that he’s barking up the completely wrong tree, I’m clearly hella fucking gay dude. _

“No, it’s okay, I have nowhere else to be,” Eliot replied, staring a Chloe like the sun shone out of her ass,

“Okay well, give me five and we’ll be out of here.” Chloe went into the back again to finish up, desperately thinking of a way to get rid of that guy.

 

None of those ideas were any good however, as Eliot stuck to her for the whole way down the street to where her truck was parked, even though she knew he lived on in dorms on campus, in the other fucking direction. He was chatting endlessly about some show he went to, that he was ‘super sure you would have loved’, and Chloe had tuned out about sixty paces back.

“Great chatting Eliot.” Chloe got in her truck and slammed the door in his startled face before starting up the truck and driving towards Rachel’s condo.

Chloe lit up a cigarette and tried to calm down her thoughts.

 

**Max**

 

“These pieces of time can frame us in our glory and our sorrow; from light to shadow; from color to chiaroscuro…” Professor Jefferson’s words echoed around the half-empty lecture theater, and Max eagerly noted down his words, avid about his wisdom when it came to photography. To anybody else, Max was sure this lecture would have sounded like pretentious bullshit, but then again she was kind of pretentious, so she could see where it held appeal.

After the lecture was over, Jefferson caught Max on her way out.

“Maxine Caulfield! Can I talk to you for a moment?” He shouted over the rabble of students leaving the room,

“Hey Professor Jefferson,”

“Max, I just wanted to check up on you’re portfolio progress, I heard you weren’t in Ms. Grant’s Science of Photography class this morning and wondered if you were okay…?” Jefferson seemed honestly concerned, and Max was flattered, she didn’t think anyone at the university really noticed her that much to realise when she was missing.

“Yeah I’m great, honestly, I just spent the morning to take some photos actually, the weather was perfect and I didn’t want my moment of inspiration to pass,”

“Now you’re talking like a photographer, that's what I like to hear. I’ll talk to Ms. Grant for you. Now don’t let me stop you, go, take the shots.” Jefferson let Max go with a smile, and Max was left reminded as to why he was her favourite teacher.

Her conversation with her professor had left her feeling inspired once more and she took off to the city in hopes of snapping some more shots.   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everybody say hi to Jeffershit, no he's not a psycho-murder in this fic but he's well... let's just say don't trust him.  
> This is a bit of a filler but the next one is probably gonna be heavy so get ready...


	11. Frank's

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.

**Chloe**

 

Chloe pulled up in the parking garage of Rachel’s building, finishing off her third cigarette, chainsmoking tended to occur when she was stressed out. She pulled out her spare key to Rachel’s condo and made her way up the stairs.

One thing that differed between her shitty life and Rachel’s shitty life was that Rachel’s shitty family had money, enough money to try and buy out their guilt with fancy apartments and cars. Hence Rachel’s, frankly, ridiculously beautiful condo on the nice side of the city and her brand new  _ bitchin’  _ convertible.

Although she could have just let herself into the apartment, Chloe decided on knocking, not wanting to poke the fire anymore than she already had.

A minute or so after Chloe knocked, a tear-stained Rachel opened the door. 

“Rach...what's going on?” Chloe said after a while,

“I’m sorry Chloe...I just…” Rachel began, on the edge of tears again,

“Hey, come here.” Chloe took Rachel into a hug, allowing Rachel to cry into her shoulder. And there they stood, for who knows how long, in the doorway to Rachel’s apartment, allowing Rachel to get the emotion out. Chloe felt the way she always did in these moments, understanding that Rachel got swept away with her emotions and often acted out because of that, but comforting Rachel as she always seemed to.

Rachel pulled away from Chloe and gave her a watery smile,

“Hey, come on in.”

 

The sat on Rachel’s couch, drinking beer and talking through things,

“I don’t know Chloe, I’m just confused right now. So much is going on with me and I don’t know, I’m just used to having you with me and now I can see that isn’t going to happen so much anymore. I mean, that’s okay, it really is Chloe, you deserve something amazing to happen to you, you deserve someone to make you really truly happy. But I guess I’m just bitter that it means things won’t be the same between the two of us. So yeah, I’m sorry about this morning, it was uncalled for...but I’m just sad.” Rachel ended with a sigh, looking at Chloe expectantly.

And Chloe knew what she wanted, because she’s heard this speech before, in many different forms. Granted, this was the first time she’d heard Rachel acknowledge Chloe’s ability to have relationships with someone other than her, but it was the latest in countless tear-filled apologies for Rachel’s unfair behaviour. Chloe had recently been coming to the revelation that her relationship with Rachel was very quickly becoming toxic, and they needed space from each other. 

But, something inside Chloe couldn’t do it, she needed more time to prepare for this heavy conversation, and to possibly lose her best friend. So she replied with her standard response for these situations,

“Hey, don’t worry about it, we’re Rachel and Chloe, right?”

 

**Max**

 

Max was getting a little concerned about Chloe, she hadn’t heard from her since the coffee shop the previous morning, it was fast approaching Thursday evening, when she and Chloe had planned to go out for a drink and this radio silence had Max doubting that was going to happen. After talking to one of her kind-of-sort-of friend’s from college, Dana, Max had been informed that texting first was never a good idea and she really didn’t want to come across as desperate to Chloe.

Max had just heated up a microwave meal and settled down in front of some cheesy Netflix movie when a text lit up her phone.

 

**Chloe: Hey Max Factor, u still up for that drink?**

 

_ Well I guess I didn’t have to worry about the texting first problem.  _ She didn’t know how to respond, she wasn’t ready and hadn’t expected this. But nevertheless…

 

**Max: Hey stranger, yeah sure. Let me know the place.**

**Chloe: It’s a place called Frank’s on 5th ave. Just tell the bouncer that ur w me**

 

Max shook her head,  _ what the hell am I doing? _

 

Max arrived at Frank’s bar in a cab around an hour later, and her heart was beating so fast, mainly because she was going to see Chloe but also because this place looked kind of sketchy and she’d never been to a real bar before,  _ shock, I know, I’m kind of a nerd. _

“Hey kid, you wanna show me some ID?” Said the frankly, ginormous bouncer on the door, who was covered in tribal tattoos,

“Erm...I...I’m here for Chloe Price.” Max stammered, full of nervousness,

“Oh! So you’re Max, go on in kid, she’s waiting for ya.” Max went on into the bar.

 

The bar was far more comfortable than what Max had expected, kind of a dive bar but it was filled with soft rock music and laughter, and of course a blue-haired beauty sat at the end of the bar, nursing a beer made this bar the best one in the city to Max.

“MAXARONI!” Chloe shouted over the music, once she spotted Max,

“Hey Chloe,” Max replied with a small wave as Chloe bounded over and took Max in a huge bear-hug, kissing her quickly on the cheek,

“How’ve you been, cutie?” Chloe lead Max over to where she had previously been sat, with an arm slung over her shoulder. Max was happy to see Chloe so happy, and clearly in her element, although the smell of alcohol was very prominant on her breath and body.

“I’ve been great, just studying and taking photos, as per usual…” Max said as the barman, a tall man with a goatee, slid an open beer to her over the bar.

“Thank you.” Max mumbled in response, but the bar tender had already disappeared to serve another customer,

“Don’t worry about Frank, that’s just what he’s like,” Chloe slurred, rubbing a hand over her face,

“Hey Chloe, are you okay? You don’t seem yourself,” Max said, leaning in to look at her face,

“Yeah, I’m awesome…” Chloe took a long pull from her beer, “come on Max, we’re supposed to be having fun…”

Max put it out of her mind and carried on enjoying laughing with Chloe, they danced a little, sang to the songs and joked around about the other patrons in the bar. Max knew there was something wrong however, and as the night started to wind down, the conversation became more intense, amplified by the alcohol and the intimate atmosphere.

“So, tell me...why haven’t you been snapped up yet?” Chloe said, leaning forward on her elbows,

“Seriously Chloe? Look at me, I’m a nerd…”

“Nerds are hot, you just gotta get over yourself. And believe me, I have looked at you. A lot.” Chloe said, her eyes hazy,

“Oh yeah? Coming from you? You’re the hottest thing I’ve ever seen, of course you have self-confidence for days,” Max said, rolling her eyes.

“Shut that mouth, come on Max… there must have been something? No super hot best friend that you secretly had a crush on? And something secretly happened at a sleepover? I thought that was a right of passage.” Chloe probed, getting closer and closer to Max.

“What? No, I mean I had a few things happen with girls. Nothing serious, and nothing with a best friend. That’s just weird…” Max said, her nervousness and suspicion rising, when Chloe replied,

“It's not really that big of a deal. I mean, I’ve had sex with Rachel.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well....there it is. Let me know your thoughts guys:)


	12. Chapter 12

**Max**

 

“ _ I’ve had sex with Rachel.” _

Max had been repeating these words in her head over and over for the last week, hoping that she had imagined them. But she knew she hadn’t, she knew it happened, maybe she even knew before Chloe had told her, the look in Rachel’s eyes, their easy demeanors toward each other, it was intimate and frankly, it was sexual. 

Chloe had gone on to tell her that it was all over now and even when they had been sleeping together, it wasn’t anything serious and they were happy being friends, and Max could tell in Chloe’s face that she believed every word she was saying, that to her it was never anything serious. But it wasn’t Chloe that she was worried about. She was suddenly reminded of the other morning outside of the coffee shop, Rachel’s angry, tear-stained face as she stormed down the street. She knew then that it was far more than friendship for Rachel and it was absolutely serious. Max knew that she needed to distance herself from Chloe, at least to let her sort out the situation with Rachel, she had been in Max’s life only a week and yet she had turned it completely upside down. In fact, that was an understatement, in their simple act of meeting, Max’s life had been whipped into a tornado and she had a feeling she was fast approaching the eye of the storm.

 

It was now Sunday, three days after the bar debacle, and Max was still adhearing to her no-texting plan. She had left Chloe, almost in a drunken stupor at her apartment, and that was the last time the had spoken. Max didn’t feel that they were mad at each other or arguing, she instead saw it as a break, a moment for each of them to take for their own lives away from the madness and intensity of their first few days together. And Max needed to decide whether Chloe was what she really needed in her life at that time, she could see every day with her was going to take work. She was intense, but exciting; tiring, but thrilling; dramatic, but hilarious; and self-centred, but so incredibly sweet. And although she could see that everything in the universe seemed to tell her to run as far away from Chloe Price as possible, she knew that there was no way she was escaping this storm. 

 

But, if she was going to do this, she was going to do it right.

 

**Chloe**

 

_ Holy fuck. _

The pounding in Chloe’s head woke her up around midday on Friday, a wake-up call that was becoming all too familiar to her. Her eyes burned as she looked around her apartment, which was more of a shit-pit than usual, and her bladder screamed. Reluctantly crawling out of bed, Chloe padded in bare feet to her bathroom. Looking in the mirror, she groaned, her hair was greasy and sticking out at every angle, her eyes rimmed in yesterday’s make-up and let’s not even talk about the smell. She used the toilet and turned on her shower.

As the hot water brought her back to the land of the living, it also brought back unwelcome memories of the night before. She remembered beer after beer after beer, dancing, falling and… _ oh no… Max… _

She had told Max about her and Rachel, and she had been fucking blunt about it too. She criticized herself for being so goddamned fucking insensitive, as always. She knew that this would hurt Max, who was obviously less-experienced and just a better person in general than Chloe, she began to recall the conversation…

_ “It’s honestly not a big deal man, it's just sex y’know. And we’re both on the same page with that, I swear to fuck. And it's been weeks so I’m pretty sure it’s over now anyway, she's my best friend y’know,” _

_ “Well, I can’t pretend I do know really Chloe, it’s not who I am, to be honest…” Max replied, _

_ “Awww Maxie, don’t be mad at me, it’s not happening anymore anyways, it’s just old habits...they die hard y’know…”  _

_ “Come on, I’m taking you home.” _

After this the conversation started to get blurry and she didn’t remember much more. The thing that killed Chloe the most was that Max wasn’t angry with her, she just looked disappointed and a little upset, but understanding, as if she was expecting it. People expecting disappointment from Chloe was something she had gotten used to over time, and she had gotten used to fullfilling it too, disappointing people was just in her nature.

There were only two times in her life that she had felt this hurt by letting someone down before. The first, when she got kicked out of Blackwell, the look on her Mom’s face had been like a punch in the gut, the second, when Rachel was hospitalised because she was stabbed by a local thug that Chloe was involved with. Though Rachel insisted that Chloe had saved her life that day, and that Chloe was involved because of her, the look Rachel gave her as she saw the life draining out of her eyes made Chloe disappointed in herself, and hardened her to the world irreversibly.

This thing with Max was different though, this hurt her, knowing that she had hurt Max and was making her see what a fucked-up mess her life had become, just as she thought she was getting it together. Sure, the risk of juvie wasn’t hanging over her anymore, and she had a stable job, a car, an apartment, but her close personal relationships were all fucked up.

 

She was barely on speaking terms with her Mom, they only communicated about the coffee shop over email, because of Chloe’s hatred for her step-father, which she had reason for, but she was beginning to regret letting that shitty relationship ruin her incredible relationship with her Mom. 

She never spoke to any of her friends from back home because of the way she left the town, in a blaze of glory, screaming ‘fuck you’ to the whole goddamned place.

It was dawning on her that Rachel clearly saw her as more than a friend, and that she was being insensitive to her feelings by playing along with it, when it wasn’t what she wanted. She was living a lie.

And now Max, she was tearing that relationship apart before it even had chance to begin because she was living a lie, keeping up the facade she always had in order to protect herself.

 

It was time to change it all.

 

**Max**

 

It was Tuesday...

 

**Chloe: I’m gonna text this because whenever I try to express my feelings face to face, I fuck up and say something wrong, and I really don’t want to fuck this up.**

**Chloe: So here goes**

**Chloe: I met Rachel my second year of Blackwell, I mean, I knew of her before, she was the most popular girl in school. She had the best grades, teachers loved her, she took part in like a billion extra-curricular activities and was so fucking beautiful, I was obviously obsessed. This was around two years after my Dad died, car accident. Guess I’ve never actually told you that. And let’s just say I was in a shitty place, acting out at home, at school, everywhere. I was just so fucking angry at the world, and nothing seemed to help I guess. I’m pretty sure Rachel saved my life, I didn’t talk to many people then, let alone have any friends, and she came into my life and made me focus on other things than my shitty life. I mean I did kind of get kicked out of Blackwell thanks to her but thats a story for another day.**

**Chloe: We became so dependant on each other, and before long our relationship changed into something more than friendship. I barely lived at home but the time I did  spend there was more dedicated to making things up with my Mom, who I know I treated like shit, rather than fighting with my step-douche. And it was all because I had an outlet, someone my own age to talk to. And for the first time since my Dad died, I was starting to see what being happy was again.**

**Chloe: Sure, it’s me so it fucked up eventually, we got into some trouble and Rachel met this guy, my dealer, because of that trouble. And a few months later I found out she was sleeping with him, and I mean thats kind of soul-crushing, I guess. But I was wrong, she wasn’t my grilfriend, she was my best friend and we loved each other but we weren’t in love. We were young and confused, discovering things about ourselves and each other. I mean, I guess I wasn’t so confused, I’m hella gay, in case you haven’t noticed;)**

 

Max chuckled at that.  _ Yeah, I noticed. _

 

**Chloe: But she isn’t, and that’s okay. She was just finding out what she liked, and expressing her feelings, and that’s just the way she does that.**

**We always wanted to escape, and after way too many failed attempts at running away, my Mom sold up the house, she wanted to see what was outside of Arcadia Bay too I guess. They used my stepdad’s pension to buy a motor home and with the momey from the house she bought the coffee shop and gave me a job as manager. I basically run the place for her, but she wears the pants y’know? Rach, came with me, of course and quickly we fell back into our old routine. We were insanely close friends who happened to fuck. This time, at least to me, it was clear though. I wasn’t going to get attached, and I didn’t want to, I don’t feel that way about her, and I never will again but for her I think the lines got blurred and to be honest I’m still not sure what she wants, but I’m gonna sort this out, and I will fix it.**

**Chloe: Because**

**Chloe: Because I want you, and I can’t have you unless you have all of me too.**

 

Tears welled in Max’s eyes, she understood how much bravery this took for Chloe to do, and she was so proud of her.

 

**Chloe: So yeah, I realise this was a lot and we have way more to talk about, but I needed you to know where I’m coming from**

 

**Max: Yeah, we definitely need to talk, you know anywhere good for coffee? X**


	13. Somewhere Good for Coffee

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.

**Chloe**

 

She had arranged to meet Max after the cafe had closed that same evening. She had just locked the door and wiped down the tables when a timid knock sounded from the door. Chloe whipped her head around and gave Max a smile through the glass door, Max held up her had to wave as Chloe made her way over to let her in. 

“Hey you.” Chloe said, rubbing the back of her neck. She couldn’t help but notice, the way she always did around Max, how effortlessly beautiful she was. Her hair was mussed around her face, and her wide eyes shined in the soft orange of the setting sun, she bit her lip as she looked up at Chloe’s face.  _ Will I ever get used to that face? _

“Hey, how was your day?” Max took off her coat and scarf and hung them on the coat hooks next to the door,

“It was good, quiet.” Chloe wasn’t going to admit that she’d spent the entire day waiting for this conversation, running through every possible outcome in her head, “You want a mocha?”

“Is that even a question? Of course.”

They both took a sip of their coffees, both a little afraid of approaching the elephant in the room.

“So where are we gonna start, huh?” Max began, 

“I don’t know, it’s just a lot. I guess...do you have any questions? Maybe that will help…” Chloe looked more shy and anxious than Max had ever seen her, staring at her knotted fingers,

“Yeah, a few. Let’s just get this out of the way, I’m afraid that you’re still in love with Rachel, I mean look at her, why wouldn’t you be? And you have been before so… I can just see it happening again is all...so yeah. If you want to end this thing with me now, you can, not that I want it…”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa stop. Breathe, okay? There's no way in hell that I’m ending this, we’ve barely got started babe,” Chloe reached over the squeeze Max’s hand briefly, “I’m not in love with Rachel, I don’t even know that I ever was. There’s something about her that drew me in at one point in my life, but I guess she’s kind of manipulative, I realise that now. She’s a crazy good actress and has this tendency to play with people’s emotions until she gets what she wants. I mean, I know about her past and her family life, the whole thing was a lie, so I get why she is the way she is but I realise that now I gotta put myself first. The whole world doesn’t revolve around her, and I shouldn’t have to put her first anymore. We both need distance to re-evaluate who we are on our own.”

Max had never heard Chloe speak with such a level head before, and Chloe hoped that she had communicated her thoughts properly.

Max took a breath, “Okay, Chloe. I believe you, I really do. But I do think that you and I have to be careful until the Rachel situation has been sorted out. I don’t want her to get hurt and I don’t think it’s healthy for us to be in a new relationship with this hanging over us.”

Although Chloe was disappointed, she knew what Max was saying was true. And she knew that she needed to be mature in this situation, she did not want to fuck this up.

“You’re right. As usual, you’re right.”

 

**Max**

 

Max’s insecurities were beginning to subside the more she and Chloe talked it out, she was nowhere near as concerned about Rachel anymore and was beginning to feel relieved and comfortable.

“You want another?” Chloe gestured to Max’s empty coffee cup,

“No, no I’m okay for now, thanks.” Chloe smiled.

“There's something else I wanted to ask you,” Max said, “What happened with your Dad? I mean, I get it if you don’t want to talk about it, you really don’t have to…”

“Nah man, it’s cool, I want you to know.” Chloe took a deep breath in and began…

“So I was fourteen, just got accepted to Blackwell, I got a scholarship in Chemistry, I know it’s hard to believe I was a science geek now, right?” Max giggled but shook her head, “Anyway, there was one morning, we were making pancakes,” Chloe smiled warmly, lost in her memories, “and my mom rang, she’d been working the morning shift at the diner and had gone to get groceries after her shift, all she needed was a ride home. Of course my Dad went to pick her up, his car was hit by a truck that ran a red light, and that was it. I loved him so much Max, we had the perfect relationship, I just wish he’d lived long enough for us to fuck it up.” Tear streamed down Chloe’s face and she wiped them away roughly with the back of her hand.

“Chloe… I don’t know what to say, I’m so so sorry.” Max’s words stuck in her throat.

“He was the greatest man I’ve ever met, and that’s not even an exaggeration. He was so good, not like...not like me…” Chloe broke into full-blown sobs by this point. Max rushed around the table to embrace Chloe, who cried into her shoulder.

The two girls sat in that embrace for an immeasurable amount of time, seeing Chloe this vulnerable broke Max’s heart. But she was glad she was letting down her tough facade in order to work through some of her problems.

“I’m glad you’re here Max, thank you for giving me a chance,” Chloe said, once her tears subsided.

“Anytime Chlo, anytime.” Max cradled her face in her hand and kissed her lightly on the cheek.

“I need a cigarette.” Chloe said after a beat of silence, “Let’s go out back.”

 

**Chloe**

 

Both girl’s were perched on the step in the tiny courtyard Chloe was smoking a cigarette, blowing the smoke into the cold air, visibly relaxing with every drag.

“So…” Chloe began, breaking the silence, “My relationship with my Mom kind of dwindled after that, I was just so angry at the world, at her, at myself and at my Dad most of all. I hated everything and went on this self-destruct mission, acting out, doing petty crime, running errands for my dealer, if nothing had changed, I’d have been on a one-way road to juvie, and that’s the best case scenario. But yeah, then I met Rachel, and you know the story from there.” Chloe lit up another cigarette. Which worried Max but she could see Chloe had enough on her plate right now.

“My mom re-married, his name is David, he’s an army vet who seriously hates me, for obvious reasons. He got this job as Head of Security at Blackwell, he has a serious surveillance fetish. In case I’m not being transparent enough, we didn’t get along, still don’t really, he treats me like some recruit and I’m glad I don’t have to spend a lot of time with him anymore, I’m just upset that means I don’t get to see my Mom, I miss her Max.”

Chloe could see that Max was getting cold sat outside,

“Come on cutie, it’s hella cold out here.” Chloe put her arm around Max’s shoulders and the girls made their way inside.

Just as the Chloe put two more coffees on, with the hopes of warming them both up, Max spoke up,

“Chloe? Don’t kill me, but...I think you need to talk to your Mom.”


	14. Santa Chlo

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.

**Max**

 

Chloe almost froze, and physically retreated from Max, who almost regretted saying it... _ almost. _

“Uh...I don’t know man, it’s been a long ass time since we talked about anything personal…” Chloe said, nervously rubbing the back of her neck again,

“I know but, I can see Chloe, in your eyes, you miss her.” Max said, pulling Chloe back, trying to reduce the anxiety.

The two girls were face to face now, Chloe stepped closer and rested her forehead against Max’s, her eyes tightly closed. 

“I do, Max, I really do. But there’s so much hurt there, just between the two of us...never mind David. I don’t think I can do this alone.” Chloe’s voice was a whisper now, even speaking these words was a huge effort for her, admitting her flaws and weaknesses was clearly a great struggle to her.

“That’s okay, you don’t have to.” Max assured, reaching up to cradle Chloe’s face and kissed her lightly on the lips.

 

Chloe took Max back to her dorm, and the journey was full of comfortable silence. The quiet was a relief after the drama and emotion of the afternoon, and Max felt dead tired, she was ready to crash.

“Hey, zombie face, we’re here.” Chloe broke Max out of her reverie by tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

“Thank you, and um… I’m proud of you, I really am. And I’m here whenever you need me, you know that right?” Max said opening the door.

“I know babe, thank you for everything.” With that, she was gone.

 

Max was making her way back to her dorm room when she ran into Professor Jefferson in the parking lot. Not really being in the mood to talk to anyone, she kept her head down and walked a little faster with the hopes of sneaking by unnoticed, he was her favourite Professor and everything but  _ good dog could the guy talk.  _ However, her plan failed dramatically.

“I see you Max Caulfield! Come over here for a sec, would you?” Jefferson called across the parking lot, standing next to a fancy SUV that Max assumed was his car.

She sighed inwardly and walked over to him,

“Hi Professor, is everything okay?” Max said, shivering now from the bitter cold,

“Yes, there's something I wanted to ask you, actually. I was going to tell you with the rest of your class in the morning, however I believe you deserve a head start.” Jefferson shot her a smirk that made her shiver for an entirely different, entirely unpleasant reason,

“The University is entering a photography contest with a number of other schools on the West Coast, we each have to submit a photograph for display at an exhibition in San Francisco. We’re allowing each student to submit a photograph and from that we’ll choose which is our favourite and that student will join me on a trip to San Francisco to see their work presented in the gallery. Here,” Jefferson handed a leaflet to Max from his jacket pocket, Max thought it was odd that he had one to hand, “the theme is ‘Everyday Heroes’, the deadline is in two weeks, I do hope you’ll enter a photo.” Though Professor Jefferson was being a little strange throughout this whole exchange, Max was excited about this opportunity and thought it would look incredible on her resume, and she was excited to start working on ideas.

“Great, thanks Professor. I’ll start working on ideas right away.”

“I’m glad Max, you’re starting to think like a really photographer. I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Bye.” 

Max finally escaped and continued her journey back to the warmth of her bed.

 

**Chloe**

 

Since returning back to her apartment, Chloe had been staring at her cell phone, trying to find the courage somewhere to dial her mom’s number and speak to her. She and Joyce had only communicated via text and email for the last 18 months, and Chloe still wasn’t sure if she could stand hearing her mother’s voice just yet, however she knew it had to be done.

Before she could talk herself out of it, she picked up the phone.

 

After three rings…

“Chloe...is that you?” Joyce’s southern drawl answered with trepidation,

“Hey Mom.”

“Is everything okay? What's goin’ on?” It broke Chloe’s heart that her mom thought like this, that the only reason she would be calling would be if something bad had happened,

“No everything’s cool… I just thought we could talk for a while.”

“Oh honey, of course we can...I miss you.” Chloe could hear the hurt in Joyce’s voice, she sounded like she was on the edge of tears,

“I miss you too, Mom,”

“How is everything at the cafe? Is it stayin’ busy?” Joyce was clearly trying to skirt around any topic of conversation that may be to heavy, just happy to be talking to her daughter again.

“Yeah, getting busier in fact, with the holidays coming up…” Chloe stopped herself, she remembered that the subject of Christmas was always tough with her Mom. They hadn’t really spent a happy Christmas together since her Dad died, and every year since David came into the picture, Chloe had found a way to be out of the house for Christmas Day, either staying at Rachel’s or getting high at the junkyard by herself,  _ Merry Fucking Christmas. _

“Oh that’s wonderful, Hon, I’m so happy it's all workin’ out. In fact, there’s something I’ve been thinking about askin’ you, and now seems as good a time as any…” Chloe’s interest peaked,

“Sure, what is it?”

“David and I are gonna be back in Arcadia Bay for Christmas this year, we wondered if you wanted to join us? And hear me out, I know you god damn hate that place, and as much as I don’t understand it, I respect that you may not want to spend a great deal of time there. But, I’d like to see you and it seems like a great opportunity for us to be together, as a family again.” Chloe was surprised, she hadn’t given any thought to what she was going to do for Christmas yet, even though it was only three weeks away. 

“I don’t know Mom…”

“Please Chloe, just think about it, okay? I miss my daughter and I think we all deserve a happy Christmas this year.”

“Okay...I’ll think about it. I’m not making any promises though.” Chloe sighed, she didn’t know if she was ready for this yet.

“Wonderful. Now honey, I gotta go, okay? But promise me we’ll talk again soon, I’ve missed the sound of your voice,” Funny, Chloe was just thinking about how much she had missed her Mom’s voice too,

“Okay Mom, I promise. I love you.”

“I love you too Baby, bye for now.”

Chloe was processing the call, and thinking about what to do about Christmas. She wanted to see her Mom, she really did, and she knew she could deal with David, she’s grown up a lot since she last saw him and was certain she knew how to deal with his bullshit by now. But the amount of anxiety she had surrounding Arcadia Bay itself was holding her back. She’d barely thought about the place since leaving two years ago, and if she was honest with herself she never thought she’d go back.  _ Like ever.  _ But, maybe it was what she needed, maybe visiting the place where it all began could be cathartic and would help her move forward a lot, but still, going there alone would be a huge task.

That’s when she had a thought.

 

**Max**

 

After waking up from an awesome nap, Max was compiling a storyboard of ideas for her entry to the Everyday Heroes contest when a text from Chloe lit up her phone.

 

**Chloe: So Maxie… Captain Chloe made ya proud**

**Max: She did? Do tell Cap…(^_^)**

**Chloe: I talked to my Mom**

**Max: You did? That’s amazing Chloe! How did it go?**

**Max: P.S you’re my hero Chloe Price**

**Chloe: It’s a long story, it’d be easier to tell you in person**

**Chloe: Which brings me onto my next point...How would you like to go on a date with me tomorrow night?**

Max squealed with delight. Sure, all she did lately was spend time with Chloe, but the idea of going on a real date still made her excited.

**Max: I would like that very much indeed, Captain.**

**Chloe: Amazeballs, I’ll pick you up at seven. Wear something warm.**

**Chloe: And christmassy. We bout to get festive as fuck, Caulfield.**

 

When Wednesday evening rolled around, Max was waiting for Chloe in her dorm. She was sporting a fabulously ugly Christmas sweater with a reindeer stitched on the front that her Nana C had knitted for her three years ago, along with jeans, laced up Doc Martens, a black parka that was the warmest she owned and she channelled Chloe in a grey, knitted beanie.

 

Her phone vibrated and she picked it up to find a selfie of a smiling Chloe sporting a fetching Santa hat and holding her fingers in a peace sign to the camera.

**Chloe: Ho Ho Ho, Santa Chlo is here to whisk you away in her sleigh! Get your cute butt out here;)**

**Max: OMW**

**Max: No emoji!!**

Max made sure to save the picture of Chloe, setting it as the lock screen on her phone, Chloe looked so beautiful and so god-damned happy, it was great to see. She grabbed her camera and went off to meet Chloe.

 

“Why hello Mad Max, I hope you’re ready for a fun-filled night of Christmas magic!” Chloe said as Max got into the truck, Chloe was loving this. 

“Of course I am, I have to say, you’re enthusiasm for Christmas is surprising, Miss Price.”

“Listen, I know I’m a hard ass, but… Fuck man, I’m in the spirit what can I say?” Chloe left out the part that she hadn’t enjoyed Christmas for years, and instead enjoyed the thrill of it once more.

“Well Santa Chloe, where are we off to?”

“Now...that would be telling.”

 

After parking the truck, they walked hand in hand for around half a mile, Max’s stomach erupted with butterflies feeling Chloe’s hand, clad in a finger-less glove, interwoven with hers. They turned a corner and Max was almost brought to tears, hundreds of wooden market stalls filled the town square, each decorated with tiny white fairy lights, the streets themselves were hung with lanterns and Christmas music played over hidden speakers. The smell of baked goods and hot chocolate hung in the air and people all around chatted and laughed with their partners and families. 

“Thoughts?” Chloe leaned in close and whispered in Max’s ear. Max had no words so she just turned and beamed at Chloe, giving her a firm kiss on her lips, taking Chloe by surprise.

“That good, eh?” Chloe chuckled in response, wrapping her arm around Max’s shoulders and walking into the market.

The two of them looked around the stalls, Max bought small, hand-made gifts for each of her parents,

“They’re actually in the Bahamas for the holidays, but I’ll give them the gifts when I next see them.” Max had explained.

Chloe pointed out a stall with a chocolate fountain, advertising Belgian waffles shaped like snowmen. Chloe bought them one each and they sat on a nearby bench laughing together and getting covered in chocolate.

“Hey, com’ere cutie, you’re a mess, girl!” Chloe remarked, as Max grabbed a napkin to wipe her face.

“Oh no, Chloe! Did I get it all?” Max replied looking at Chloe in the  eyes, which were intently focused on Max’s lips,

“You just missed a tiny bit…” Chloe leaned in to kiss a non-existent smear of chocolate from the corner of Max’s mouth. 

“You’re hella smooth, Chloe Price.” Max commented, shaking her head,

“Did you seriously just say ‘hella’? I think I’m a good bad influence on you.”

 

They were each nursing hot cups of cocoa and appreciating the beauty of there surroundings when Chloe decided to bite the bullet…

“So you don’t have plans for Christmas then? If your parents are away I mean…”

“No, nothing so far. I’ll probably just hang out in my dorm, no biggie.” Max shrugged and looked down into her drink. Chloe could tell she was hiding a little sadness about her parents, who didn’t seem all that present in her life.

“Well, I was thinking, that maybe you wanted to spend it with me?”

“Really Chloe? I don’t want to intrude…” Max said, but her eyes betrayed her hidden excitement,

“You’d be helping in fact, my Mom asked me to spend it with her in Arcadia Bay. And if I’m totally honest with myself dude, I don’t think I can do it without you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well this was big one! We had the phone call to Joyce, a splash of creepy Jeffershit and a super cute slice of Pricefield date night. This one kind of poured out of me, I enjoyed writing it and I think it's my favourite so far. Also thanks for all the kind comments you guys are leaving, I absolutely love reading them. I hope you enjoyed and let me know what you all thought:)


	15. Snow Doe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.

**Max**

 

“You want me to come back to Arcadia Bay with you? Are you sure?” Max was first of all excited at the idea of spending Christmas with Chloe, but she also felt nervous. Nervous mainly on behalf of Chloe, she knew this was going to be a hard time for her, and it took a lot of courage for her to face her family again. But Max couldn’t lie, she also felt nervous at the prospect of meeting Chloe’s family,  _ will they like me? What will they be expecting? Do they even know about me? _

“I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life.” And she sealed it with a firm kiss to Max’s lips.

 

They spent the rest of the evening eating various sweet treats and admiring the trinkets and gifts that littered the stalls, Max eyed up a snow globe that had a small, hand-painted doe inside,

“Look, Chloe! Isn’t she the cutest!” Max exclaimed, shaking up the little glass ball and watching the snow flurry around the tiny deer.

“Dude that kind of reminds me of you, look, all doe-eyed and everything…”

“Shut up!” Max giggled, placing the snow doe back on the stall, linking arms with Chloe and continued walking.

 

The two girls fell stumbling and giggling, after a little too much sugar, into Chloe’s apartment, with neither of them remembering what it was that was so hilarious. Somewhere in the whirlwind of blue hair, Christmas sweaters and laughter, Chloe leaned up against Max, on the wall next to the door and kissed her deeply, Max’s hands tangled in Chloe’s hair as the laughter subsided. They broke the kiss, both breathing deeply, will small smiles planted on their lips, Chloe opened her eyes to look into Max’s, the tension was palpable in the air, she reached up to stroke Max’s face before taking her hand and leading her to the bed.

 

**Chloe**

 

The sun broke through the window, casting a wave of light over Max’s face, Chloe watched how it framed her face perfectly, and made her skin glow. She admired the subtle slope of her nose, the adorable freckles scattered across her face, with a few peppered across the pale skin of her collar bone. She was tangled up in Chloe’s blanket, with her shorter leg thrown over Chloe’s long ones. 

Chloe could definitively say that yesterday was one of the best days she’d had in a long time, spending so much time in Max’s company, just the two of them, had made her hyper aware of her huge depth of feeling for her, and last night was...well… _ hella awesome. _

As much as she wanted to make this moment last forever, Chloe had to work an hour later and she knew that Max had class, so unfortunately they couldn’t stay in their little bubble for much longer.

“Hey kiddo, wake up.” Chloe whispered in Max’s ear, running her fingers through her hair,

“Huh? What? Oh...good morning.” Max woke up with a start, with eyes full of sleep and confusion, her hair sticking out at all directions,

“Fuck dude, you’re so cute… come on man, you’ve got class soon.” Chloe jumped out of bed and went to get dressed.

Chloe showered quickly and threw on her ripped jeans, a  _ Firewalk  _ tee she stole at some show when she was at school and a red plaid shirt, pulling on her beanie over her still-damp hair.

She emerged out of the bathroom to find Max just putting on her shoes, she was wearing the same cheesy Christmas sweater she had been the night before.

“Not that I’m trying to dampen your Christmas spirit but do you want another shirt to wear? So you don’t have to be an elf at college all day?” Chloe asked Max,  _ and I absolutely definitely don't just want to see you in my clothes. _

“That would be great Chloe, thank you. Are you sure you don’t mind?”

“Of course not man, go ahead. See if you can find a suitable outfit in my fashion hole.” Chloe gestured to the small closet on the left side of the room while she put on a pot of coffee.

Max opened up the closet and searched through the seemingly endless rack of band tees and worn out tank tops, she eventually settled on a tee with a raven on the front. She pulled off her sweater, replacing it with the t-shirt which was way to long and hung off her shoulder slightly, when she turned back to Chloe, she found her ogling with a small smirk on her face.

“My camera’s in my bag if you want to take a picture, perv.” Max said with a wink and grabbed the spare cup of coffee that Chloe had set on the counter-top for her.

The two of them sat on the bed drinking coffee from mismatched mugs and eating leftover goodies from the cafe.

“So what are your plans today?” Max said, munching on a cinnamon swirl,

“Well I’m on shift at the cafe until close, and then...well I guess I gotta face Rachel at some point.”

 

**Max**

 

The punch of jealousy that Max usually felt when Chloe mentioned Rachel wasn’t really there anymore, she trusted Chloe, and she knew that Chloe and Rachel had to maintain some sort of relationship, Chloe couldn’t lose her best friend, it wouldn’t be fair. But Max couldn’t lie, she would be super happy once this conversation was over and done with.

Chloe drove Max to campus, dropping her off in the parking lot outside the photography building.

“Thanks for the ride, Chlo.”

“No problem, cutie. Have a great day.” Chloe replied cupping Max’s face in her hand,

“You too, and let me know how it all goes with Rachel.”

“I will.” Chloe leaned in and placed a soft kiss to Max’s lips, which very quickly deepened. After a good few minutes of making out, Max moaned into Chloe’s mouth and broke the kiss.

“Okay, I really gotta go. Laters!” Max jumped out of the truck and didn’t look back, because if she did, she would never get to class.

Chloe sounded the horn twice, making Max jump. She turned around to flip Chloe the bird, but Chloe just laughed and drove away, leaving Max shaking her head.

 

Jefferson was in a foul mood for the whole Photography Lab class, he was snappy and irritable the whole time.

At the end of the class, Max begun to pack her things away,

“And, guys, don't forget the deadline to submit a photo in the 'Everyday Heroes' contest. I'll fly out with the winner to San Francisco where you'll be feted by the art world. It's great exposure and it can kick-start a career in photography. So Stella and Alyssa, get it together. Taylor, don't hide, I'm still waiting for your entry too. And, yes, Max, I see you pretending not to see me.” Jefferson really had a stick up his ass today, and Max rolled her eyes, taking off out of the class.

“I see you Max Caulfield! Don’t even think about leaving here until we talk about your entry!”  _ Fuck!  _ Max cursed internally, she hadn’t even thought about her photo over the last couple of days, her mind had been preoccupied with Chloe.

“Professor, honestly, I’m working on it...I promise.” Max said, staring at her shoes,

“Ah! Waiting for that elusive right moment?”

“Something like that, yeah. But I’ll get it done.” Max wasn’t lying, she really wanted to get a good photo to submit, this mattered to her and the prospect of making a career in photography excited her more than anything else.

“Don’t wait too long, John Lennon once said, ‘Life is what happens while you’re busy making other plans’.” and with that, he turned back to his computer.  _ What a pretentious ass-hole.  _ Max was struggling to see why he was her favourite professor right now, sure the guy was talented but that didn’t give him the right to act like this towards his students.

“Oh, and Max. I think you could use a private tutorial to discuss your written work, and I have a few tips for you in regards to your entry. Are you free tomorrow? Say noon?” Jefferson turned back around just as Max opened the door to leave. She was so ready to leave by this point she simply turned and said,

“Sure Professor, I’ll be here.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anybody else thinking Max might be making a mistake there? Let me know your thoughts!


	16. I Want to Break Free

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.  
> Bit of a weird chapter today guys, I'm visiting family at the moment so fitting in writing is proving a little difficult. I did have time to get this one down though, and to be honest it has worked out quite well because I think this one needs to stand alone.

**Chloe**

 

She had to bite the bullet, she couldn’t leave the Rachel situation waiting any longer.

 

**Chloe: Hey Rach, you free?**

 

There it was, she had actually worked up the courage, and as much as she knew she could back out in the way she always did, she convinced herself that that wouldn’t happen this time. She wanted her life to move forward, she thought they both deserved to be happy, but they had to be happy apart, and Chloe felt excited at the anticipation of sspace from Rachel, after so many years it would be a huge relief.

 

**Rachel: Hey, yeah I’m not doing anything. You wanna come to my place?**

**Chloe: Nah man, let’s go someplace out. I’ll meet you at Skip’s in 20?**

Chloe knew that she had to meet on neutral ground, somewhere where Rachel couldn’t fall into hysterics and Chloe couldn't shout and fight back. Also, they needed to go someplace where neither of them had any advantage, they couldn’t be on their own territory, on level ground.

 

**Rachel: I’ll see you there**

 

It seemed like Rachel knew what was coming. She wasn’t being her usual funny, upbeat self over text, instead more brief and to the point. They both knew this conversation was coming, it had been for a while, and they both needed it.

Chloe got in her truck and begun the short drive through the city to Skip’s, a vinyl shop come milkshake cafe that had been their regular hang-out spot since they moved to Portland. It was an important place for the two of them, it was where they had built their relationship since leaving Arcadia Bay, and it seemed only fitting for it to be where they redefined it.

Chloe pulled into the small parking lot next to Skip’s, seeing Rachel’s convertible already sat across the lot, so she pulled in the spot next to it.

Queen’s  _ I Want to Break Free  _ played on the record player behind the counter,  _ huh...relevant. _

Rachel sat sipping on a strawberry milkshake through a straw in the booth where they usually sat, tapping her manicured fingernails against the vintage metal table. She looked different, tired somehow, her blonde hair was piled into a messy bun atop her head, fastened with a fancy bulldog clip, her eyes free of any makeup. She was still beautiful, but far less put-together than what she usually was. She wearing an artfully oversized sweater with strategically placed holes in it, revealing a lacy camisole underneath. 

That was another difference between Chloe and Rachel, Rachel bought her clothes with holes already in them for fashion purposes, the holes in Chloe’s clothes happened by accident, or because her clothes were so cheap.

Rachel looked up from her milkshake and caught Chloe’s eyes just as she plonked down on the cushioned bench opposite her.

“Hey Chlo,” Rachel smiled at her friend, with an undetectable edge to her voice, “did you order a shake?”

“No, I’m good…” Chloe replied, pulling off her beanie and scraping her hair back with her fingers,

“Are you?” Rachel rested her head on her hand and raised an eyebrow at the blue-haired girl. Even though their relationship wasn’t in the greatest place right now, they girls knew each other and Chloe couldn’t deny that Rachel could read her like a book.

“No, Rach...honestly I’m not.” Then the flood gates opened.

“I just don't think I can do this anymore Rachel. I love you, you’re my best friend and will always hold a special place in my heart as the person who pulled me through some of the darkest times of my life. I am so fucking grateful to you man, because I know that if we’d never met, there is no way I would still be alive today, you saved my life. But things are different now Rach, we need to find out who we are as separate people because this relationship is going bad and I really don't want to see that happen. We can’t be romantic on any level towards each other anymore, there can’t be any hints towards it or flirting or anything, for both of our sakes.” Chloe took a deep breath, “I really fucking miss my best friend, I want her back.”

Chloe never shared this shit, with anyone, and talking about her personal feelings this much was draining, but she knew it needed to be done. And she felt so much better already. 

What Rachel said next, however, she was not expecting.

“So...me and you...it’s never actually going to happen, huh?” Rachel laughed bitterly and roughly wiped a tear from her eye. Chloe couldn’t believe it, she never thought that Rachel felt this way, above anything else she felt blindsided.

“Wait...what? Rachel, where is this coming from?”

“I just always assumed we’d end up together y’know? We’re Rachel and Chloe, I know we have rough patches and we drift apart sometimes…”

“Rachel, you slept with someone else. Back then...I thought we were it as well, but I grew up, and realised that we aren’t meant for each other, we’d never work. Why didn’t you tell me you felt like this?” Chloe couldn’t hide her frustration or confusion, and she kinda wanted to leave.

“You really don’t get it do you? You’re Chloe fucking Price, you’re amazing, funny, really beautiful but you don’t see any of that, anybody would be stupid not to want you. And fuck, you’re the most intimidating person I’ve ever met, sharing feelings with you is not easy.” Guilt set deep into Chloe’s stomach, she felt awful for not realising this, here she went again, disregarding other people’s feelings without even realising she was doing it.

“Rachel...I…” Chloe didn’t really know what to say,

“You know what, it’s fine. I just need some space, okay? You’re right. I need to be alone for a while.” Rachel gathered her things and stood up abruptly, 

“Rachel wait, I’m sorry…” 

“No, Chloe. You don’t need to be. I’ll call you when I’m ready but for now I just need to leave.”

Chloe followed stood up to watch Rachel leave, not knowing what to do for the best.

“Goodbye Chloe.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well...that was a lot. Let me know what you think, I'd like your guys's verdicts because to be honest I don't even know who is right and wrong in this situation. Anyways, hope you enjoyed and Max and Jeffershit are coming later this week...


	17. Cause and Effect

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.  
> TRIGGER WARNING- Sexual Assault, please do not read if the subject is troublesome to you. -Mention and description of chronic anxiety and panic attacks. Reader discretion is advised.

**Max**

 

Max gathered all of her preparation for the Everyday Heroes contest as well as her almost complete portfolio and laptop into her satchel and begun the walk to Jefferson’s office. She was a little confused by this whole thing, if she was completely honest. She was almost finished with her portfolio, and her written work had been getting solidly decent grades. She knew for a fact that she was ahead of most of the other students in her class, so Jefferson wanting to meet with her to discuss all this was kind of a mystery, she hoped that he just had some tips specifically for her... _ but something tells me that’s not the case. _

She arrived at Jefferson’s office five minutes before their agreed time of 12 and knocked on the wood panelled door.

“Yes?” Jefferson’s voice sounded out as Max cracked the door open,  _ great, he sounds happy. _

“It’s me Professor.” Max walked into his office,

“Oh yes, hello Max. Take a seat and we’ll get started.”

The meeting started out normal enough, Max showed Jefferson what she had been working on and he seemed to approve enough. She tried to take advantage of the time with him and seized the opportunity to ask him about the layout of her portfolio.

“So, I’m not entirely sure about the order Professor Jefferson, do you think my shots on ripples should come first? Or the waves?” Max flipped to the pages she was talking about,

“Hmm let me take a look,” Jefferson walked around his desk, leaning against the table where Max was sat, “and Max, you can call me Mark, we’ll be spending a lot of time together if you win the contest, so Professor Jefferson seems a little to formal, don’t you think?” Max simply gave a tight smile back, the close proximity was making her uncomfortable, and she wasn’t sure on how to respond.

They tried a few combinations of how to place the photographs in the portfolio, but Max was struggling to concentrate because of how uncomfortable she was. She really wanted to leave.

“You see Max, unless I’m mistaken, the whole portfolio is about cause and effect, right? So your placement should reflect that…” Jefferson was rearranging the Polaroids on the table,

“Yes...erm Mark…” Max felt so wrong saying that, “that’s why I…”

“So you should put the causes first, into the ripples, then the waves, then your pieces on consequence before looping back around to show the effects on those original causes,” Max already planned to do all of this, in fact it was the original idea for the whole piece, yet she could see that Jefferson thought of himself as smart for thinking up this idea, and she just let um talk, not brave enough to stand up for her own originality of idea.

“The effects are your strongest shots too, so leaving them until the end would be nice.” Again, this was already the plan.

“Yeah, sure. So I was obviously thinking the butterfly photo comes first…” Max reached over and accidentally knocked the Polaroid on the floor by her feet, “Whoops.”

Everything that came next happened in a blur, Max begun to reach down to retrieve the picture, but Jefferson was quicker, he picked the Polaroid up off of the floor, and on his way back up to standing planted his hand on the inside of Max’s ankle. Max froze, her chest tightening and heart pounding.  _ No, no, no please not now. _

As Jefferson stood back up, his hand slip up the inside of Max’s leg, and as he reached her thigh, he leaned in to Max’s ear, his breath hot and oppressive. He was knelt down at her level now, hand at the top of Max’s thigh, and Max could do nothing but stare at the wall in front of her. She tried to remember the techniques for pulling herself out of a panic attack, which she knew was happening, but her mind was blank. She could concentrate on nothing but Jefferson’s hand, which felt like it was burning her, and the disgusting feeling of his breath in her ear. She couldn’t breath.

“It’s a great shot, Max,” Jefferson whispered in her ear, “You have  _ great  _ potential.” He squeezed her thigh, hard. Max was in physical and mental pain, and she wanted to scream but her voice had disappeared, she wanted to fight but the will to do anything at all was lost. 

Then his hand was gone, and Max let out the breath she had no idea she had been holding. A knock sounded from the door as Jefferson left the Polaroid in her lap, a reminder of where he had just been, leaving Max shaking.

He moved over to the door, with ease, as if he wasn't bothered by what had just happened, as if it hadn’t happened at all. In walked Dr Wells, the deacon of the university, and Max could see both their mouths moving, she could see that they were laughing but she couldn’t hear a word, she was still too stuck in the trauma of the moment. 

She felt as though she was floating above her body as she placed her things in her bag as quickly as she could and left, without a word. She heard them shouting after her but once she started walking, nothing could stop her. And she knew where she was going.

 

**Chloe**

 

After gathering herself together, Chloe had left Skip’s and gone to the cafe, somewhere where she could escape from the confusion of her encounter with Rachel and throw herself into work. There were knew recipes that had been playing in her mind for a while, and she thought locking herself in the kitchen would be a good outlet right now.

It had been 2 hours since she’d left Skip’s and as it turned out, being elbow deep in pastry dough was helping her out a lot. She was trying to figure out whether cheese and garlic was best or tomato and herb when Eliot poked his head around the kitchen door.

“Chloe, that girl’s here to see you again.” Chloe immediately lit up, she knew he could only be talking about Max.

Chloe was covered in flour but too eager to see Max to bother cleaning herself up at all. She wandered out of the kitchen,

“Maxaroni! How are you babe…” As she turned the corner out of the kitchen, her heart broke. Max stood in front of the counter, her hair damp from the light snow outside, wearing only a thin denim jacket over her clothes to protect herself from the freezing cold outside, shivering. Her beautiful, elfin face was stained with tears that stilled poured from her eyes.

“Chloe…” She managed to choke out from between her sobs. Chloe couldn’t get around the counter fast enough, looks of sympathy shot from the few customers who were sat in the coffee shop as Chloe took Max in her arms, pressing her face into the taller girl’s shoulder. Chloe felt Max’s body give in to the sobs as she took her into the kitchen.

“Baby, hold on a second, we need to get you warmed up, okay? I’m here, I’m here.” She helped guide Max through to the kitchen, ignoring Eliot’s look of disapproval.

She sat with Max almost on her lap in the tiny kitchen chair that sat in the corner of the room, rocking her and stroking her hair as she slowly calmed down. Chloe had seen all of this before, she’d been through this before. Max showed very obvious signs of chronic anxiety but seeing a panic attack in full fruition like this was still not easy. The best Chloe could do was try and comfort her.

“Max…” Chloe begun once Max’s breathing became steady once more, “Do you want to tell me what happened? You don’t have to, if you don’t feel comfortable, I’m just...fuck, I’m worried about you man.” Max looked up at Chloe through watery eyes, and Chloe’s heart shattered. She couldn’t stand seeing her in so much pain, she felt like she was sharing it, as a stabbing was sent through her chest.

“It...it was… Jefferson.” Max said quietly,

“Your Professor? What did he do Max?” Chloe felt a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach,

“I went to his office, he thought I needed help with my portfolio…” Max told the story as it had happened, it took time and Chloe to tell that every word she spoke was a struggle. But she did it, and Chloe admired her immense strength at even speaking the words. Once she got to the part where Jefferson touched her however, Chloe couldn’t contain herself. Her knuckles were white as she clutched on to the edges of the chair, and her breathing was ragged, she could feel herself loosing to the anger.

“And then...then...he squeezed my thigh, hard Chloe, I can still feel it…”

“I’m going to kill that motherfucker, he’s fucking dead.” Chloe stood up, removing her apron and throwing it across the room. She needed to go there, and make that fucker pay for what he did to Max.

“Chloe please, calm down. You can’t do this, not like this…” Max joined Chloe, and held her face in her hands, she knew that their personal connection was the only thing that would bring down her anger. 

“Max, nobody, especially you, should have to go through that…now we have to stop Jefferson. I won’t let anyone hurt you again, ever. He’s going to fucking pay.” Hot tears were rolling down Chloe’s face now, the anger and hurt for Max spilling out of her.

“No Chloe, not this way. I can’t do this alone, I need you with me. Please, we’ll figure out what to do somehow but for now, I just need you. Let’s go home.”  _ Home, it’s where ever she is. _

Chloe looked into Max’s eyes, the deep pools of blue brought her back to reality, she was calm now but the overwhelming need to protect Max remained. She needed her to be safe, with her.

“Yeah,” Chloe took a deep breath, “let’s go home.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another heavy one, I know. But this is a subject that I am very passionate about and I feel stories have to be told.  
> You can find resources and helplines if you have been a victim of and/or affected by sexual assault here: http://www.womensequality.org.uk/support  
> You aren't alone.


	18. Can't Think Straight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.  
> This chapter is inspired by my Tinder bio.  
> (And is full of fluff)

**Max**

 

Max was only just beginning to feel safe again. Here, wrapped up in Chloe, binge-watching Doctor Who, the last day was slowly melting from her mind. They had returned from the coffee shop to Chloe’s apartment, ordered Chinese food and bunked down, Chloe really knew what she was doing, she had done everything right for Max and she was grateful, and amazed by Chloe. She put up this hugely abrasive, tough exterior yet she showed Max incredible sensitivity and was down-right sweet to her. She’d had a tough life and it had hardened her, but also gave her the perspective to have great empathy.

Chloe was running her hand up and down Max’s lower leg, which was thrown over Chloe’s knees, she felt the slight quaking as Chloe laughed at Donna Noble’s charming snark. The episode ended and Chloe peeked over, assumedly to check if Max was still awake, after she saw her eyes open, she asked,

“Hey kiddo, how are you feeling?”

“I’m good Chloe, thanks to you.” Max said with a sad smile,

“Dude, don’t even play me with that, this is all you. You’re so strong, you’re a rock star Maxine Caulfield.”

“Max, never Maxine.” Max replied with a chuckle, reminiscing over their first meeting. Chloe responded with the classic Chloe belly laugh, leaning over to kiss the tip of Max’s nose.

“I knew that day…” Chloe started, serious now,

“Knew what?”

“That you were something special.” Tears welled in Max’s eyes.  _ Fuck, I love you. _

“And that you were going to fuck my head up. Fuck knows I can’t think straight with you in my head all day.” Chloe was smiling to herself.

“Chloe, who are you kidding? You never thought straight.” Max giggled, and leaned over to kiss Chloe firm on the lips.  _ Hella gay, her own words. _

“Of course not.” She gave Max a wink.

 

They were eating cheap vanilla ice cream from the tub when the elephant in the room popped up,

“So did you talk to Rachel?” Max began,

“Yeah, but don’t worry about it honestly, we got bigger fish to fry, kid.” Max could tell that something had happened and that it had upset Chloe. But of course, she didn’t think that her problem was significant in comparison to Max’s so didn’t want to bring it up. This simply wasn’t the case however, this was important to Chloe and was therefore important to Max, and it was clear that she needed to talk about it now before it was allowed to be buried somewhere deep in the back of her mind.

“No we don’t Chloe. Please, tell me what happened, I want to know.”

 

**Chloe**

 

She did not need this bullshit right now. Max had been through so much today, the last thing Chloe thought she needed was her bitching about some high-school drama between her and her ex.

“No we don’t Chloe. Please, tell me what happened, I want to know.” Max’s huge blue eyes were staring up at her,  _ fuck, how can I resist that? _

“So we met at a milkshake joint downtown, and I basically laid out that we couldn’t be how we used to.” Chloe stared at her fingers, which were knotted in her lap.

“That...we weren’t together, she threw that away years ago when she slept with someone else. But even in spite of that, we aren’t meant to be, me and her. I know that. We’re toxic together so we need to be apart for a while, for both of our sakes.” Chloe looked up reluctantly, and Max encouraged her to go on with a slight nod of her head.

“Anyway, this is where Rachel decided would be the perfect point to hit me with the bomb that she always thought she and I would end up together.” She felt Max stiffen a little by her side, “So, it kind of ended on a shitty note. I told her that it was never going to happen, besides, I’ve got someone who I want to be with. And it ain’t Rachel Amber.” This made her relax again, Chloe wished there was a way to Max see herself clearly. To see that she only had eyes for her, and make her believe it.

“Rachel responded in true Rachel style and stormed out of the place.” Chloe rolled her eyes, trying to play like it didn’t bother her, that she was over Rachel’s bullshit. Which she was. But that didn’t stop her wishing she was different, wishing they could have talked it out like the adults they were.

“And how did you feel about that?” Max said, studying Chloe’s face,

“Honestly? I feel like a giant load of crap.” Chloe said, pulling cigarettes and a lighter out of her sweatpants pocket and lighting up.

“I figured as much…” Max said,  _ how the fuck does she know me so well in such a short amount of time? _

“I just miss my best friend man, if I could rewind time…”

“What would you do?”

“I wouldn’t sleep with my best friend.” Chloe said, her face stoic.

“You shouldn’t regret anything Chloe, at one time it was what you wanted.” Chloe was in awe of Max. She was younger than Chloe yet so much more wise somehow, she took a moment just to look at her, to think about what she’d been through, and how much of a whirlwind her life had been since Chloe crashed her way into it and yet here she was, stronger than ever.  _ I am so fucking in love with you. _

 

**Max**

 

“Never mind that, think of the shit it’d cause. You’ve heard of chaos theory, right?” Chloe said, clearly diverting the conversation to a lighter note,

“What would you know about chaos theory?” Max narrowed her eyes at Chloe sceptically,

“All I know is you change one little thing and before you know it, it’s ‘Hello, Armageddon!’” Chloe said with passion, “I mean that’s boss as fuck, but y’know.”

“Yeah well don’t think I’d be rewinding time to save your ass.” Max joked, causing Chloe to lean over and pinch her side,

“Who are you kidding? You’d sacrifice an entire town for me. And you know it.” Chloe leaned back smugly, taking the last few drags of her cigarette,

“Yes, Chloe Price, yes I would.”

 

Chloe had gone to work the next morning, leaving Max alone at Chloe’s place, she really wasn’t up to going to class and didn’t feel like being anywhere near the university right now. So she worked on whatever photography she could from Chloe’s couch.

She held the small Polaroid that would have been her Everyday Heroes contest entry in her hands, there was no way she could submit it to Jefferson now. Even thinking his name made her feel sick.

The sad thing was that she was really proud of her photo, she had taken pictures of people she had deemed to be everyday heroes from her existing collection of photos, alongside pictures she had taken over the last couple of weeks. Placed them up on her photo wall and taken a picture of the back of her head, out of focus looking up to all of these amazing people: A man giving money to the homeless, an injured veteran raising money for ex-servicemen and women, a mother giving her last bite of food to her small child, along with countless others. It showed how these inspirational people shaped Max’s life, and how her impact on the world paled in comparison to their’s. A lot of work had gone into the photo and it made her angry that Jefferson had ruined it.

Along with the Everyday Heroes photo, Max had brought another collection she had been working on, this one though was completely top-secret confidential. But it was going to be special, she was certain of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bae>bay


	19. The Max Effect

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.  
> This chapter is inspired by youndechosugar's Pricefield GIFs. You can find them here: http://youngechosugar.tumblr.com/

**Chloe**

 

After her long day at work, Chloe came back to her apartment to find Max sleeping on her couch, wearing one of her red flannel shirts, her photographs scattered around her with the smell of whatever food Max was cooking filling the apartment.  _ Fuck, I could get used to this. _

She crouched down beside Max’s face, cupped her jaw and kissed her softly on the lips,

“Wakey, wakey sleeping beauty.” She whispered softly, kissing her on the nose.

“Huh?” A sleepy Max awakened with a start, groggy-eyed and confused,

“God, you’re so cute.” Chloe chuckled and stood up to get changed, “Imma go wash up, get the kitchen smell offa me, give me 10.” She ruffled Max’s hair then wandered into the bathroom.

Chloe stripped out of the black and grey flannel shirt she had been wearing, and ran the tap into the basin. She splashed some cold water on her face and looked in the mirror. Once again, surprised by what she saw.

This time, she was happy. Her blue eyes were bright and sparkling, her face red and flushed, but healthy. Her blue hair was mussed around her face, the colour was fading a little and her roots were beginning to show, she made a mental note to pick up some dye when she was next out. But it had been a long time since Chloe had looked in a mirror like this, and liked what she saw, and most of all- recognised the girl she saw staring back at her. And before she knew it, a huge, toothy grin broke out across her face. She was so fucking happy. The past few weeks had been the best she could remember, Max had brightened up her world and she couldn’t remember a time that she had felt this happy. At least not since her Dad had died.

She padded, barefoot out of the bathroom, only wearing her underwear, she had  _ definitely not on purpose  _ forgotten to take a change of clothes in with her.

She closed the door of the bathroom behind her, causing Max to look up from where she had been tidying up her photos, and do a double take.

Her eyes went wide as she scanned Chloe’s body, she took in her cocky smirk, her three-bullet necklace that hung between her breasts, clad in a simple black bra. The smooth contours of the muscles in her abdomen, under her porcelain skin. The smoothness of her skin broken only by the colours of the tattoo weaving around her arm. Max bit her lip.

“You can’t do that to me Max, with the lip. It kills me.” Chloe said, breaking Max’s staring,

“I can’t do that? Chloe, you can’t do this to me!” 

“Do what?” Chloe feigned innocence, shaking her head with mock confusion.

Max stood up, Chloe’s flannel shirt hitting her just mid-thigh, it was only fastened with two buttons, revealing her pale pink bra underneath.  _ Oh, she’s playing me at my own game. _

Max walked toward her slowly, she tucked her messy hair behind her ear, and looked up at Chloe through hooded eyes. Just as she reached her she took her lip between her teeth, and bit down.  _ Holy fuck. _

Chloe couldn’t take anymore, she grab Max by the ass, lifting her up. Max wrapped her legs around Chloe’s waist, who turned around to pin Max against the door, kissing her deeply, unable to hold back. Carrying Max with her, and never breaking the kiss, Chloe walked over to the couch.

 

**Max**

 

“Wow.” Chloe’s head was resting on Max’s bare chest, the two of them breathing heavily, both marvelling at how lucky they were to have found each other.

“That was really...something, huh?” Chloe said looking up at Max’s face,

“Always is with you, Chloe Price.” Max responded, and she felt Chloe smile against her chest.

“Hey you missed a photo.” Chloe sat up with a start to retrieve the photo that Max had forgotten to tidy away.

“Holy shit man, this is an awesome shot, which collection is this for?” Chloe held her Everyday Heroes shot in her hands, inspecting it.

“Oh it’s not important Chloe, don’t worry about that. Here, let me take it.” Max wrapped a blanket around herself and reached to snatch the Polaroid from Chloe’s hands,

“Whoa whoa whoa, not so fast Maxie. I can read you like a book, man, what is this?” Chloe stood up before Max could reach the photo.

“It was my entry for the Everyday Heroes contest that Jeff...Professor...that the university was running. And I obviously can’t enter it now, so can we just forget about it? Please?” Max said dejectedly, it hurt Chloe to see her so upset. She had clearly put a lot of effort into the entry and it really was a great shot.

“No Max, I’m sorry babe but we can’t. I’m not going to let that ass hole take your passion away from you. This shot is amazing, and I honestly think you have a great chance of winning the contest, you just have to stop being afraid. What Jeffershit did to you was unforgivable, and we’re going to make him pay, believe me. But for now, we have to show him you aren’t backing down, that you aren’t afraid of him. People like him thrive off the power they gain from women, but he’s getting nothing from you. You know why? Because you’re a bad ass Max Caulfield. And you’re stronger than he will ever know.” Chloe was holding Max’s face in her hands now, and her words had filled Max with the confidence and self-love she needed. And in turn, a huge admiration and love for Chloe as well. She wanted to tell her, but she couldn’t get the words out yet. So she kissed her firmly instead.

“Thank you, Chloe. For everything.”

“No Super Max, thank you.”

 

Max was finishing the pasta and meatballs she’d started cooking for Chloe, stood at the stove. She was about to call out for Chloe to come get it, when she felt her hands slip around her waist and draw her body in. 

“Smells amazing.” Chloe said, kissing Max on the cheek. 

“Why thank you, Captain. Why don’t you sit down and I’ll bring it over.”

“Sure thang.”

They sat eating the spaghetti from the few clean plates Max could find in Chloe’s apartment, drinking beer and enjoying each other’s company in comfortable silence.

“Have you given any thought to when we’re setting off for Arcadia Bay, yet?” Max struck up conversation,

“Hadn’t really thought about it.” In all the chaos and drama of the last week, Chloe had almost forgotten that they were spending Christmas with her Mom and David.

“Well get thinking Chloe, Christmas is in a week.” Chloe started to choke on the sip of beer she had been drinking,

“A week?! Is that it? Jesus, where the fuck did December go?” Chloe couldn’t believe it had rolled around so quickly.

“It really is, so? Any ideas?” Max chuckled.

“Well, Arcadia is only a couple of hours drive from here, so whadya say we go over on Christmas eve? I think my Mom should be there by then, I’ll check.”

“Aye Aye Captain, sounds good to me. I can’t wait.”

 

**Chloe**

 

The two girls slept once again, wrapped up in each other. Chloe had a plan today, it was the last day of the semester before the winter break and therefore Max’s last opportunity to hand in her Everyday Heroes entry. And goddamnit, she was going to hand the picture in, even if Chloe had to do it for her.

Once they had both woken up, showered and eaten breakfast, Chloe brought the subject up.

“So, you want me to come with you to campus today?” Chloe said, after a drag on her first cigarette of the day,

“Erm...I don’t know Chloe…” 

“I’m not going to pressure you Max, you don’t need that right now. But, I’m here for you, you just need to know that.” Max thought for a moment, and she didn’t know where the strength came from to say…

“Okay Chloe, can you give me a ride?”

 

They walked hand-in-hand down the corridor towards Jefferson’s office, Max had planned to go in and face him alone, but the closer they got, the more impossible that seemed. They finally reached the heavy panelled door, and Max knocked.

“You want me to come in with you?” Chloe asked softly, and Max nodded her head. She was afraid that needing Chloe there made her weak, but she couldn’t go back into this room alone yet, she just couldn’t.

The two girls entered.

“Hello Max, and this is…?” Jefferson greeted her as normal, acting as if nothing was any different at all.

“This is Chloe, my…”

“I’m the girlfriend.” Chloe’s confident voice broke out, she was abrasive and standoffish, and her grip on Max’s hand had tightened.  _ Keep calm Chloe, please.  _ Max prayed silently, she knew she was over-protective and this situation was only going to make her mad. Even through this situation was intense, it hadn’t escaped her attention that Chloe had called her her girlfriend.

“Oh?” Jefferson looked baffled, he turned his attention back to Max, who kept her face stoic.

“Now  _ that  _ is a surprise.” Jefferson whispered cockily under his breath with a smirk. Both of the girls' blood boiled,  _ did her actually think I was attracted to him? What the fuck? _

“And why is that?” Chloe said through gritted teeth, squaring her shoulders and pushing towards Jefferson.

“Chloe please, don’t. We’ll deal with this later. Please just let me hand the picture in and leave okay?” Max said so that only she and Chloe could hear.

“Jefferson, I don’t have much time. I only came to hand in my entry.” Max said, feeling brave, now. She handed him the photograph and her essay to accompany it.

“Now we’re leaving. And you’ll be hearing from me, Jefferson, believe me.” Max spat out, before leaving the room, pulling Chloe behind her.

“Wow, Max, seeing you like that was amazing, not to mention  _ hella sexy.  _ But I still wish you’d have let me kick his ass.”

“Oh believe me, Chloe. We’re taking Jeffershit down. I have a plan.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Lemme know your thoughts! (*_*)  
> P.S WHY IS CHLOE SO HOT???


	20. Greetings from Arcadia Bay

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.

**Chloe**

 

It was the 23rd December and Chloe was packing up the truck ready for their journey to Arcadia Bay the following morning, she was determined to keep herself busy to prevent the panic and anxiety from setting in. She hadn’t been back to Arcadia in years, and if she was completely honest with herself she never thought she would go back. There were so many bad memories linked to the place and the distance had allowed her to forget, to a certain extent. 

On top of the anxieties, Chloe was genuinely excited to see her Mom again, David not so much. And she had been looking forward to spending Christmas with Max since the idea came up, and that was overriding everything in her.

“Hey Captain. Burrito delivery.” Max wandered up to the truck, she’d been to Taco Bell to grab them some food. She looked super cute, wearing a bobble hat, matching scarf and a fur-lined denim jacket, and was clutching two paper bags.

“Ugh my saviour, come on, let’s go on inside. It’s hella cold out here.”

After they finished their food, Chloe took the food packaging and threw it in the trash, and she could clearly see Max’s surprise that she was cleaning up. In fact, Chloe had been waiting since they had gone inside for Max to notice that she had tidied the apartment, and she had been too engrossed in her food, until now…

“Hey Chloe, did you clean this place?” Max was suddenly up on her feet and looking around, visibly shocked by the cleanliness of the place.

“Maybe…” Chloe smirked,

“It’s actually...tidy. Who are you and what have you done with Chloe Price?” Max leaned against the kitchen cabinets and folded her arms, eyeing Chloe suspiciously.

“Still me babe, just me with a clean apartment.”

“Well I’m very proud of you, and it really looks lovely.” Max kissed Chloe on her cheek, making her blush violently. Chloe smiled back.

“So what did you do today?” They both sat on the futon, catching up. Chloe had spent the day closing up the cafe for the Christmas break, and Max had been back to her dorm to pack.

“I had a very interesting day actually, have I told you about Kate Marsh?” Chloe’s ears pricked up, and she straightened her back defensively, “No.”

“Oh calm down Othello, Kate is my very straight, very religious friend from my photography class.” Chloe visibly relaxed again, “Honestly Chloe, haven’t you got the picture? There’s only one girl I’m interested in. You don’t need to be jealous. You’re my girlfriend.” She was looking Chloe dead in the eyes, trying to hammer the point home.  _ I know babe, but you need to understand how gorgeous you are. _

“I know, I’m sorry. Continue.”

“Anyways, Kate Marsh and I were talking a little about our favourite creepy professor. And guess what?” Max said passionately.

“What?”

“Jeffershit made a pass at her last week. She was really upset this morning, and when I asked her why, she broke down to me. He’s been putting her through hell for the last couple of days and she’s really going through it. It sounds super similar to what he did to me, but she’s dealing with this all alone and hasn’t shared it with anyone until today.” Chloe once again looked at Max with awe, she had also been through hell with this situation, yet she was so concerned about the well-being of others above her own. 

“Wow, that dude is a real piece of shit. Sounds like Kate really needs a friend right now. And that Jeffershit needs to be taken down.” Chloe rubbed her face, her faith in humanity dwindling the more she thought about Jefferson.

“And it got me thinking, Chloe, if he’s done it to the two of us…” Max began,

“How many more people has he harassed?” Chloe completed.

 

**Max**

 

They woke up the following morning at 7am and had reluctantly got out of bed ready to travel to Arcadia Bay. Max had texted Kate Marsh to check that she was doing okay before deciding to put the Jefferson issue aside for Christmas. After finding out that Kate was okay, and having as much fun as could be expected at home, she helped Chloe pack the last few things into the truck and they set off. 

“Chloe…” Max said sleepily,

“What can I do for you?” Chloe looked over from the driver’s seat,

“I’m hungry, and I need coffee as a matter of urgency.” Max said through a yawn,

“You see that bag by your feet?” Max looked down at the carrier bag that laid in the foot well,

“Yes…” Max lifted the bag onto her lap,

“Look inside.” Chloe smirked, keeping her eyes on the road.

Max peeked inside, and pulled out two flasks, and a few warm paper bags.

“You’re my hero.” Max leaned over and kissed Chloe on the cheek, making her blush. She cleared her throat and leaned her head on her arm, against the car window, steering with one hand.

“Well come on dude, chow down. I worked hard on our on-the-go breakfast.”

The paper bags contained various home-baked pastries that they shared, while Max cringed through Chloe’s music playing on the radio.

“Now for the coffee…”

Max took a sip, and audibly moaned,

“Whoa Max calm down.” Chloe chuckled,

“I’m sorry, forgot how much of a mocha-making master you are.” She savoured the sweet, smooth taste, warming her up and bringing her to the land of the living.

“Thank you Chloe, this is exactly what I needed.”

“What can I say Kid, I know ya.” Chloe replied as she cranked down the window slightly and lit up a cigarette.

 

They had been on the road for around an hour and a half when the Arcadia Bay lighthouse came into view, its silhouette beautiful lit by the low winter sun. Max, of course, didn’t realise that the lighthouse meant they were entering the Bay, and didn’t connect that it was the reason Chloe had gone so quiet.

“Chloe, can you pull over? I want to take a picture of that.”

“Sure.” She pulled into a lay-by and sat in the truck while Max climbed out to take a picture.

After her Polaroid printed out the picture, Max looked at her surroundings and spotted a sign on the other side of the road.

 

_ ‘Welcome to Arcadia Bay!’ _

 

_ Oh...that’s why.  _ She walked back to the truck, opened the door and looked at Chloe sympathetically,

“Hey, I’m sorry. I didn’t realise we were here already. Sorry for being an oblivious asshole.”

Max felt super bad, she knew that today was going to be hard for Chloe, and she’d been completely disregarding that.  _ I’m a terrible girlfriend. _

“What the fuck are you talking about man? The lighthouse is super pretty, it’s actually one of the few cool places in this hellhole. And it’s super pretty.” Chloe said, in a surprisingly chipper tone, “So, can I see the shot?” 

“Yeah, sure” Max handed Chloe the picture and she smiled at it,

“You’re talented Max, and this is beautiful. Kinda like you.” Chloe kissed her on the cheek and Max smiled in response.

“Come on Chloe, let’s get this show on the road.”

 

They pulled up to the Two-Whales Diner at around 9am. They’d arranged to meet Joyce and David there.

“Wow, hasn’t changed a bit. It’s actually like going back in time.” Chloe took a deep breath and they walked towards the diner.

 

**Chloe**

 

_ I can’t believe this is happening.  _

The bell above the door chimed as the two girls walked into the diner, Chloe was immediately hit by the smell of eggs and bacon and the memories of her childhood and teenage years. Helping her Mom out before school, arguing with Justin about who’s skate tricks were better, talking to Rachel for hours…

“Chloe?” Her Mom’s southern drawl broke her from her thoughts, she whipped her head around and saw Joyce standing next to a booth, holding two cups of coffee. The sight of her Mom made Chloe stop in her tracks. Her face, on older version of her own, framed with thick blonde hair, tied back, as always. She was wearing worn out blue jeans, her obligatory heels and a pink sweater, and she looked like Joyce, and Chloe realised how much she’d missed her Mom, how much she needed her.

“Hi, Mom.” Chloe choked out, and Joyce put the coffee cups down on the table and rushed over to her daughter, pulling her into an embrace.

Chloe had no idea how much time they spent there, hugging each other, Chloe a child again crying into her Mom’s shoulder, letting out all the pain of not seeing her, the emotion of her new life in Portland and the hardship of living the life she had. She was just a little girl, who needed her Mom.

“There’s new metal in your face.” Joyce said, pulling away from Chloe with tears in her eyes.

“Huh? Oh yeah.” Chloe suddenly remembered that she had gained numerous facial piercings since she had last seen her Mom,

“You’re just as beautiful as I remember.” Joyce said, reaching up to wipe away her daughter’s tears, she was still shorter than Chloe.

“So are you, Mom.” Chloe sniffled through her tears.

“Hush with the crying now, and introduce me to…” Joyce raised her eyebrows and gestured towards Max, who had been waiting on the sidelines patiently while Chloe and Joyce had their moment.

“Right, Max this is Mom, Mom this is Max, my girlfriend.” Chloe said with pride, and pulled Max over to meet her Mom. Max looked a little like a deer in the headlights but shook Joyce’s hand nevertheless.

“Well how are you doing Max, It’s great to meet you. I’m Joyce.”

“You too Joyce, I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“Oh no, poor you.”

 

“Chloe.” That was the voice Chloe had been dreading hearing,

“David, how are you?” Chloe replied, and she found it far easier than she had been expecting to be civil towards him. He looked exactly the same as he had the last time she’d seen him 2 years ago.

“I’m good, we’re good. Thanks. It’s real good to see you again, Kid.” David then surprised Chloe by climbing out of his seat and awkwardly one-arm hugged her. And she felt so much better already.

One of Joyce’s friends had gone away for the holidays and was letting her use her house over Christmas, which was nice because it meant they all had somewhere to sleep and somewhere to cook, rather than eating at a restaurant. So after sharing a couple of coffees at the Two Whales, Max and Chloe got back in the truck and followed Joyce and David’s car to the house.

“How are you feeling?” Max said once they were alone,

“Surprisingly, I feel awesome, dude. Like, really really good.” They grinned at each other.

 

Chloe remembered the house from her childhood, it was small, but homely and comfortable. The tiny living room was filled with mismatched couches and a way too big Christmas tree that just added to its cosiness. Both girl’s loved it and felt instantly at home.

The Price family always exchanged gifts on Christmas eve, so Max and Chloe got to work unloading the gifts they had bought, for each other and for Joyce and David and put them under the tree. Once they all had settled in and Chloe had made everyone hot chocolates they decided to open gifts.

“Okay so who’s first?” Chloe asked, suddenly feeling like a child again.

“Actually Chloe, I have something I need to give you before we start.” Chloe eyed her Mom suspiciously,

“Okay…”

“Here,” Joyce handed Chloe a small box, as she opened it up, her heart exploded.

It was her Dad’s wedding ring, it wasn’t particularly fancy or expensive, just a plain gold band with  _ W.P  _ engraved in the inside.

“Mom…” Chloe whispered in disbelief, “I can’t take this.”

“Yes you can, baby. I want you to have a little piece of him, of his heart. I have my piece,” she gestured toward her own wedding ring, that she wore on her other hand now, “and you should have yours.”

After another crying session, Chloe accepted the ring, wearing it on her thumb, the only finger it would fit on, and reached under the tree.

“Right, Max’s turn.” Chloe gave Max the haphazardly wrapped box. It had a small tag attached reading, 

_ To Max _

_ Merry Christmas, _

_ Love Chloe x _

She ripped off the paper and opened up the box.

She pulled out the snow globe and her eyes welled with tears,

“Chloe… how…? When…?” She shook her head in disbelief. She had remembered how much Max loved the snow globe and the look in her eyes now reminded her why she had bought it. 

“When you were getting us drinks at the market.” She replied smiling at the little doe inside the globe.

“Thank you, I love it.” She hugged Chloe tightly and kissed her on the cheek, whispering in her ear,

“And I love you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's a long one today, my dudes. Hope you all enjoy it, and lemme know what you think.  
> Also on a side note, would you guys like to see some kind of social media dedicated to this fic (tumblr/ instagram)? I have lots of images of inspiration and stuff that I wouldn't mind sharing and giving sneak previews and updates and memes and other gay shit. So yeah I'd love to hear your thoughts on this, thanks and bye x


	21. The Gift That Keeps on Giving

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.

**Max**

 

Max watched Chloe’s face as her eyes glossed over and she looked at Max with nothing but pure, unadulterated awe. She shook her head slightly in clear disbelief, mouthing ‘I love you too’, back to her, suddenly unable to find her voice.  Max smiled back to her, they both knew what was between them, words weren’t necessary anymore.

 

“Here, Chloe.” Max reached under the tree to pass Chloe a flat, square parcel, that was surprisingly heavy in Chloe’s hands. Max could barely contain her excitement at giving Chloe the gift, she had been compiling it for so long, and the she should have known the look on Chloe’s face made it all worthwhile.

“Max…” Chloe had messily torn off the paper of the gift, revealing the large, wooden frame that contained a collage of pictures. They were overlapped Polaroids of the two of them, of stupid selfies that Chloe barely even remembered Max taking, of Chloe’s back walking through the Christmas market, framed by twinkling lights, and finally the slightly larger photograph in the centre, was the selfie that Chloe had photo-bombed the morning after their first night together. 

“I know it’s not a lot, it’s just my pictures you know?” Max started to explain shyly,

“I adore it, thank you.” Chloe explained, kissing Max softly as thanks.

Max watched as Chloe studied the collage of photographs, finding new details, and examining the moments they had previously experienced together, and she felt love and happiness like she couldn’t remember. Being here, accepted into Chloe’s family, in her home town made her feel welcomed and warm.

“Okay,” Chloe began as she roughly wiped away the few tears that had escaped her eyes, “Mom, I bought you something. You too, um….David.” Chloe handed over the small gift boxes that contained their presents, Max had helped her with these ones so they were wrapped artfully in brown paper with red ribbon.

Chloe had bought Joyce a small, handmade pendant from the market, that had a tiny wooden blue-jay dangling from it.

“You maybe don’t remember, but there was a time that a blue-jay flew into the kitchen and we made a big mess trying to get it out and…”

“I remember, hun. I remember.” Joyce smiled warmly at Chloe,

“Well...um...yeah, I guess it just reminded me of you.” Chloe smiled tightly, showing this much affection to Joyce wasn’t something she was used to.

“And it reminds me of you. I love it, baby. Thank you.” Max could see the bittersweet love in Joyce’s eyes. She knew that there was a part of their relationship that would never get back to what it was when Chloe was a young girl, but she had something now. At least she had something.

After David opened his new wallet that Chloe and Max had bought him, he said thank you, gruffly and it didn’t escape Max, or Chloe’s, attention that as he was transferring over his things from his old wallet, a small picture of a younger Chloe, her face screwed up in a sarcastic smile was placed in the window pocket of the wallet. Chloe couldn’t quite believe it, but Max could and she just shot her girlfriend a wink.  _ See, you idiot, he does care about you. _

Max began to help clear up the torn wrapping paper that littered the floor, and Chloe stood to help her take it to the trash can, when Joyce interrupted,

“Chloe, actually there’s one more thing.”

“Mom, you already gave me enough.” Chloe gestured to the ring that had found a home on her thumb.

“That was yours already, hun. This one is my gift to you.” She held out a thick envelope. Max felt just about as confused as Chloe looked.

“Go on now, open it.” Joyce encouraged with a smile. Chloe opened the envelope and pulled out a thick stack of papers, and her facial expressions went from confusion, to shock, to disbelief the more she read. The room was silent for around a minute until Chloe finally managed to get out the words,

“Mom...are you for real?” Max was getting more than a little curious now, she was racking her brains trying to think what they could possibly be, the words on the paper being just out of her sight.

“Absolutely honey, I have been for a while now.” Joyce said, leaning in to David.

“What is it Chloe?” Max said, unable to contain her curiosity any longer.

“I think...They’re the documents to transfer the ownership of the coffee shop. She’s giving me the cafe.”

 

**Chloe**

 

_ Holy fucking shit.  _ Chloe couldn’t believe this was happening. Sure, she had been running the coffee shop for the last couple of years, and yeah, sure she loved that place more than her own home, but, was she cut out to be its owner? Her mom had always dealt with the more complicated stuff, she had to cope with the financial aspect of the business, but she guessed her mom trusted her enough to think that she was up to it. So, sure, she was up to it. She trusted her mom’s judgement, and most importantly, she trusted herself.

 

“Chloe? What do you say?” David had spoken up now, eager to hear her response as well,

“I say, where do I sign?” Chloe said with a chuckle of disbelief.

David laughed gruffly, and Joyce exclaimed with happiness, as the three of them embraced each other, they were a family again, perhaps for the first time ever.

“Really, though Mom? You think I can do this?” 

“Absolutely Chloe, Lord knows you’re stubborn as hell and can do anything if you put your mind to it. I’ll be here if you need to ask me any questions, and it’s gonna be hard hun. But I believe in you. We all do.”

Chloe sought out Max’s eyes, looking for reassurance in this, and she got it, in a sure smile of comfort, a squeeze of her hand and a nod of her head. She knew they could do this, together.

“Mom? Not, that I’m ungrateful but, what brought this on?”

“That’s what I was wondering too.” Max chimed in,

“Well, Chloe, when I originally bought the coffee shop, I had the intention of giving it to you eventually. It just struck me of your kind of place the minute I stepped in, I could see you there. But, back then, and I’m sure you’ll agree with me, you weren’t ready to take on the responsibility of owning it yourself, so I set you on to run it. Now, though, after you called me the other week, I knew it was time to hand it over. You’ve had a rough time baby, and you’ve struggled, and I know you’re still struggling in some ways, but you’re settled, you’re mature and I trust you completely.” 

Joyce began to well up with tears,” I’m so proud of you Chloe, of the strong, beautiful woman you’ve become and I know your Dad would be too. So this just feels like the perfect time to give you what has always been yours.” She finished, sniffling. David put his arm around her and they both looked at Chloe with pride.

She felt so overwhelmed. It was going to be so much work. And at that point, a little like the scared young girl she had been all those years ago, alone. Until she felt a small, warm hand intertwine with her own, and she looked down to see Max by her side, and it all melted away. For the first time since she had lost her father, her life felt like it was under her control.

 

After a night of drinking, eating chocolate and playing silly old board games, the whole family, because that’s what they were- a family, went to sleep, happy and content.

 

Christmas Day came, and it was quiet, and calm for the most part, nobody feeling that any kind of a fuss was necessary. They just enjoyed each other’s company, eating Joyce’s wonderful food and telling funny anecdotes from Chloe’s teenage years.

“Well, there was this one time,” David became far more open and talkative the more red wine he drank, “Just after Chloe got her ass kicked out of school, that she shows up at home, after being gone more than a day, with her Dad’s toolbox in tow. And she was covered in oil and grease head to toe.” David was laughing, and Chloe had her arms folded, clearly embarrassed by the turn of conversation,” I ask her where she’d been and what she’s been up to. And the little punk decided that I’m some kind of idiot and will believe she’d been swimming at the school pool with a friend. So I say, swimming in what? A pit of oil?” David in his drunken stupor found his story hilarious, and Max politely laughed along with him, eager to hear a little more of what Chloe was like as a teenager.

“Yeah...um… I’d fixed up my truck mostly that weekend.” Chloe said, justifying the story.

“You fixed up your truck?” Max said with surprise,

“Yeah, it was even more of a wreck when I first found it.”

“You never fail to astound me Chloe Price.” Max said, and kissed her on the cheek.

 

**Max**

 

After they’d all eaten Christmas Dinner, Max was helping Joyce clean up in the kitchen,

“I have to thank you Max.” Joyce began, “You’ve brought my daughter back to me, and I’m so thankful to you.” 

Max shook her head,

“No Joyce, this was all her, it took courage for her to reach out to you again. But it was her courage, not mine.” They both looked over at Chloe, who, just out of earshot, was bickering with David about something they found on TV.

“Oh, I have no doubt it was her courage, hun. But you’ve helped her. Here,” Joyce opened up her purse which sat on the counter beside her, and pulled out a tiny photo. It was a young girl, with strawberry blonde hair, smiling goofily, covered in pancake batter. It took a little getting past the hair colour and the huge smile, but it was definitely Chloe.

“That’s my Chloe.” Max said quietly, looking at the picture intently, causing Joyce to smile with earnest.

“William took this picture with his instant camera. It was the last picture he ever took... He had his car out right after this and—and…” Joyce’s eyes glossed over.

“I’m so sorry Joyce, he sounds like he was and incredible man.” Joyce simply smiled in response.

“This was when my baby was so full of life and light. She was hopeful, positive... everything she wasn’t after William died. And this was the last time I ever saw Chloe truly happy.. Until today. I lost her for such a long time Max, and she changed a hell of a lot along the way. But she’s back now, and I think that’s largely to do with you. So thank you, from the bottom of my heart.” They hugged each other, and Max felt so taken in by Joyce’s warmth, “Here, I want you to have this. Keep it as a reminder of who she truly is.”

“Thank you, Joyce.”

 

“What are you doing, losers? Having a bonding session about how fucked up I am?” Joyce turned ready to chastise Chloe, before seeing the smile on her face and realising she was joking. Max didn’t even turn away from the sink when she replied,

“Sure we are Captain, it’s the gift that keeps on giving.” Her voice had a tone of playful sarcasm.

The sun was beginning to set now, casting a golden glow through the windows of the house,

“Anyways Mom, Imma whisk Max away for a little while, show her some of my favourite places in this hellhole. Can you and Sarge keep yourselves entertained for a couple of hours?” Chloe said, mouth full of leftover turkey.

“Oh, I’m sure we can.” Joyce said smirking,

“Ew. Ew. Ew. Gross, We’re leaving now.” Max grabbed their coats and scarves as Chloe dragged her out of the door quicker than you can say ‘hella’.

 

It was just on the edge of dusk when they pulled up in Chloe’s truck to what Max could only describe as the prettiest pile of trash she’d ever seen. 

“It’s pretty.”

“Yeah, what do photographers call this time of day again?”

“The golden hour.” Max replied.

 

They jumped out of the truck and Chloe grabbed Max’s hand,

“Welcome to American Rust, my former home away from hell.” Chloe said swinging her arms out wide beside her,

“Raw and rough, it suits you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! Sorry this one took so long, I had a deadline at uni this week which had to come first unfortunately (although Wordsworth seems a little dull in comparison to my two favourite lesbians). Anyways, as always, let me know your thoughts. x


	22. Max Was Here

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.

**Chloe**

 

Chloe led Max through the familiar pattern of memories that lived in the junkyard, it looked almost identical to what it had when she left years ago. The bitingly cold breeze whistled as it whisked through the rusted out car bodies and twisted metal, and Max shivered at Chloe’s side as it caught up to her. Chloe let go of Max’s hand and wrapped her free arm around her shoulders,

“You okay?” Chloe smiled down at Max, an expression of tenderness colouring her face.

Max nodded, “Just cold.”

“Come on, there’s something I want to show you.” Chloe skipped ahead, and broke into a jog, “Come on, slowpoke!”

 

Max caught up with Chloe as she slowed to a stop outside of a breeze-block structure in a clearing opposite a sailing boat, that Chloe remembered as being her pirate ship, allowing her to sail far away from the torment of her teenage years in this very town. 

Chloe grabbed either side of the plywood board that blocked the doorway to the shack, a board that Chloe had placed there herself 2 years ago in a vain attempt to keep people out of her secret hiding place.

As the board moved, it kicked up years worth of dust that had accumulated inside the shack, dust motes raised and flurried through the air, lit up by the golden glow of the setting sun. The flurry blurred the girls’ vision for a moment, and Chloe felt that she was watching her memories of this place run out through the haze. She could hear Rachel’s laugh, smell the thick smoke from her bong, which lay discarded by her feet, and feel the bittersweet pang of teenage angst and rebellion.

Other than the expected layer of grime, the singular room remained unchanged, even down to the half-drunk beer that sat on a pile of skating magazines, empty pizza boxes and traffic signs. Chloe hadn’t expected to feel this way, and she couldn’t even pinpoint what it was she was feeling, but she felt something hot and wet run down her cheek, and realised she was crying. Max was watching her from behind, she had yet to step over the threshold to the shack, not wanting to intrude on what she could see was Chloe’s space, her oasis. 

Chloe reprimanded herself, she was letting herself go soft, it was just an abandoned shack. But it brought back all kinds of memories, good and bad, and that overwhelmed her. She had never gone through this purge, never sorted through the pain of her upbringing, and now it was catching up with her. But she was so glad she had come back.

She wandered around, lightly touching the reminiscents of hot summer nights and rainy fall days. She also wondered why she had been so keen to bring Max here, perhaps it was to over-ride the memories of Rachel, which she knew wasn’t fair on Max, but Chloe was a selfish creature and knew she couldn’t have sorted through these memories without Max by her side. Or maybe it was to share with her the deeply personal information from her past, to know her on a more intimate level, on every level.

Chloe was about to leave when she spotted it,

 

**CHLOE WAS HERE**

**_Rachel was Here_ **

 

She traced the words with her index finger, remembering how she placed the sharpie in Rachel’s hand, how she got some kind of joy from the idea of corrupting her, that Rachel was finding a kinship in Chloe’s rebellion.

That was it, the reason she came here. To let go of Rachel. So much had happened over the last weeks and months, she hadn’t overcome it yet. She was no longer in love with Rachel, she was in love with Max, but her constant presence in Chloe’s life couldn’t just disappear on its own, how could she have been so stupid to think it could. And as she looked from those black words on the grey, to Max’s face, she knew. It wasn’t clear what she knew, but she knew it.

“Come on, let’s go.”

 

The rest of their stay in Arcadia Bay followed without much incident, and when it came time to say goodbye to Joyce and David, it didn’t feel so much like one, probably because it wasn’t a goodbye. It was a see you later.

They hugged, and Joyce cried, but Chloe simply gave a lazy salute and climbed into the truck, cigarette dangling from her lips.

“I’m proud of you.” Max said, once they were alone in the confines of the truck. And Chloe gave no verbal reply but winked and smirked behind the cigarette, throwing her arm over the seat behind Max’s head and backed out of the driveway.

Chloe made a detour to the lighthouse on their way back, this time wanting to leave Arcadia Bay with a stamp of Max overlaying her memory of the town.

Chloe sat on the beach, smoking, and watching the waves crash silently onto the beach below. She pretended not to hear the shutter of Max’s camera from behind her, she smirked and thought,  _ perv. _

Max sat beside her on the bench and Chloe saw it again, a future. Sitting in this very spot with Max when they were old and grey, thinking back to the very first time they were together here. Max snuggled into Chloe’s side and neither woman said a word, none were needed.

Who knows how much time passed, but Chloe’s cigarette had long since burned out and she flicked it to the ground in a shower of ash.

She kissed Max’s forehead, temple, cheek, jaw, chin, then finally, deeply on the mouth. 

“I love you.”

“I love you.”

 

**Max**

 

It was the 7th January, Max’s first day back at class after the holidays. The ever-present fear at facing Jefferson was glowing like embers in the back of her mind, getting hotter with every step she took down the corridor. 

Chloe had offered, albeit drunkenly on New Year’s Eve, to escort Max to class like some kind of personal bodyguard, to which Max had shushed her, I’m a big girl, she’d said. 

Right now, she was wishing she had taken Chloe up on her offer. The thought of spending an hour in the same room as Jeffershit had her anxiety shooting through the roof. It made her angry that this asshole had this much power over her, he shouldn’t be able to do this, Max knew she had strength and chastised herself at feeling this way. 

Then she remembered Kate, how damaged she had seemed when she spoke to Max,

 

_ “I don’t want him to hurt me anymore Max.” Kate sobbed into her hands, _

_ “It’s just so unfair, I hate him. I hate him.” _

 

And Max remembered that she wasn’t weak for being afraid of Jefferson. None of them were. It made no comment on their character, instead on his. He liked having power over them, that’s the reason he did it, and the fear was a vital contributor to that power. So, no. It wasn’t a bad thing that they were afraid. It was a good thing that they were going to take him down in spite of that fear. That’s what made them strong.

When Max entered the classroom, she saw Kate sitting alone at the furthest table away from Jefferson’s desk, with one other girl. Max reached into the back of her mind to try and retrieve the girl’s name. Brooke?

Max sat at the desk with the other two girls, who both said nothing but gave the same tight smile, and the look in both of their eyes told Max more than their words possibly could have. 

They said,  _ Me too. _

Something snapped inside Max that day, the sheer scale of the injustice suddenly falling onto her shoulders with an almighty thud. The embers that were previously glowing in the back of her mind caught on fire now. The flames of fury lighting up her senses.

They had enough evidence to take the fucker down, the testimonies of the girl’s along with physical proof being more than enough to call the police. And of course Max was going to do so, but she needed to make him pay first. 

She took out her phone and shot Chloe a short text.

 

**Max: I’m calling the cops today. Speaking to Jefferson first tho. May be a little late to dinner, don’t worry. X**

 

He entered and began lecturing in his regular style, Max didn’t listen to a word, blinded by her own determination, finally finding the strength within herself.

The hands closed together at 12 noon and the class was over, Jefferson dismissed everyone and Max walked in a straight line to his desk. His eyes were downcast at some work he was marking. Max stood in front of him for an eternity, before pushed up his glasses and didn’t move his gaze from the paper,

“Can I help you, Miss Caulfield?” He said in a bored tone,  _ fucker. _

Max scoffed and shook her head.

“No, no you can’t. I just thought that maybe I might extend the courtesy of letting you know you’re done. This little game you’ve playing with our lives, it’s done.”

“Well, Miss Caulfield, I’m sure I don’t know exactly what you’re referring to.” He placed the papers down and leaned back in his wing-back leather chair, folding his arms and shooting Max a cocky smirk.

“God you really are an insufferable bastard.” Max rolled her eyes, completely exasperated by him now. Completely unimpressed by his bullshit anymore.

Jefferson let out an obnoxious laugh and stood up, walking around the desk to Max’s side.

“Goddamn, you are a fighter, I’ve had my eye on you,” He ran his finger along Max’s jaw, she remained still, he breath ragged with rage and fear, “and I have noticed that you’ve been more fearless in the last month than you have been the whole semester. Maybe your whole life.”

“Blah, blah, blah. God, I hate your voice now.” Max shook herself out of any fear and grounded herself in the situation at hand.

“Stop lying to yourself, you want me Max, you know you do. Stop fucking that faux punk slut and come to me. You know I can make you feel things she ever could…” He grabbed her jaw and pressed his open lips to her jaw. That’s what broke her. 

She squirmed out of his grasp and stepped out of his reaching distance.

“Fuck you.” He had a look of shock on his face that Max swiped from his face with a harsh slap. She had no idea where the courage came from, but she knew it felt fucking amazing.

“Bitch.” Jefferson seethed.

“Eat shit and die, asshole.” With that, Max stormed out of the classroom, and straight down the hall to Dr Wells’s office.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay guys, so the end is in sight now. We've still got some drama to come but I think their story is slowly coming to an end. Don't worry though, I have more ideas and a brand new (very different) fic already in the works.  
> But for now, let's not worry too much, we still have 3 more chapters with these lovely gals to look forward to.  
> As always, I would love to hear any feedback you have to offer:)


	23. Helping Hand

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.
> 
> I know you've all been waiting for it...

**Chloe**

**Max: I’m calling the cops today. Speaking to Jefferson first tho. May be a little late to dinner, don’t worry. X**

 

Don’t worry? Don’t fucking worry? Of course, why wouldn’t Chloe worry that her girlfriend was facing, probably alone, the most insufferable douche nozzle she had every come into contact with. Chloe’s blood boiled. She had spent the morning huddled in the coffee shop’s tiny office room trying to pore over the paperwork involved in transferring over the ownership from her Mom. Now she had received that text, there was nothing else going on in her mind. She had to find Max now, fuck knows what that asshole was doing to her. With that thought the sick feeling in the pit of Chloe’s stomach lurched and she had to see her now.

Her chair scraped against the wood floor and she marched out of the shop, barked an order at Eliot about looking after the place for a while, and didn’t even bother to look at his face for a reaction as she left in the direction of the university.

She wasn’t aware of anything around her, black spots invaded her vision. She didn’t know the layout of the university and would have gotten lost if she hadn’t been here with Max just a few weeks before, and therefore her path was directed straight to Jefferson’s office.

 

There was no way she was giving him the pleasure of foresight, so she barged straight through the unlocked door into the dark, stuffy room where she found the man, smoking a cigarette. The smell of whisky and smoke hung around him, and he didn’t appear to notice Chloe for a tense few seconds after she came crashing into the room, he was focused too intently on something on his computer screen.

He had removed his glasses, and eventually turned his head to see Chloe standing in the corner. A slow, menacing smirk spread across his face,

“Ah, I should have known.” He had the audacity to laugh.

Chloe couldn’t open her mouth, she was too consumed with pure hatred to think anything other than how much she wanted to turn that smirk into a bloody pulp.

“I just had the most interesting conversation with your  _ girlfriend _ ,” He said girlfriend as if it was a lie. It wasn’t sarcastic, it was condescending. And that fuelled the anger inside Chloe even more. He was lucky, if they’d met at a different point in Chloe’s life, he would be dead on the floor by now. Thank fuck for Max.

“She has fire that one. It’s a shame she doesn’t have the courage to use it.” He was coming closer,

“Don’t you dare comment on her courage.” Chloe had found her voice.

“Oh! She speaks!” He raised his arms up, and Chloe writhed, his arrogance was deafening.

“You know, I like Max, so so much,” With every word that left Jefferson’s mouth, Chloe could feel the anger inside of her taking over, “so much in fact, that I don’t think she deserves to be with a fuck-up like you. I mean, just look at you, what could you ever offer anybody? This faux-punk bullshit isn’t fooling anyone. When you end up dead in an alley somewhere someday, she’s going to wish she never met you.” He was whispering in Chloe’s ear, “And besides, how can you ever give her pleasure? She needs a man. Who can really give her what she needs, like the slut she is.” His top lip curled and that was the final straw. Chloe had been taken over. She raised her fist and clocked him upwards across his jaw. He stumbled backwards coming to rest against a desk, a look of surprise colouring his face. There was something else there too, Chloe wasn’t sure what it was but it gave her the courage to continue.

She used all of her strength to pull him across the room to push him up against a wall, her forearm against his neck to pin him there. He looked terrified, and that almost made Chloe laugh, he was suddenly a weed of a man, cowering in the face of consequence.

“Never again.” She seethed as she punched him repeatedly in the gut, he let out wheezed moans with every blow. She gave him a final backhand across the face, her rings cutting the skin of his cheek before releasing him so he feel to the floor.

His knees were pulled up against his chest, he was shaking like a leaf. Chloe crouched to the floor, leaning her elbows on her knees, she had broken him, and she found great joy in that.

She tilted her head and studied him, he was sobbing and muttering something unintelligible under his breath. She leaned in a little closer.

“No! No, no, no, please…” He held his hands to shield his face.

“Look at me.” He didn’t. “Look at me, you fucker.” She grabbed him by the jaw to force his eyes to meet her rage.

“When she comes into class tomorrow, you’re gonna to be gone. You’re gonna leave and never come back to this place. And once you’re gone, we’re gonna disgrace your name. We’re going to make sure that everyone knows what an abusive, disgusting beast you are, so that you’ll never teach again. So I hope you enjoy the remainder of your sad, pathetic life, and I hope you feel useless, and that hate yourself. Because you deserve it.” Chloe didn’t blink the whole time, she nodded her head and raised up from her crouched position.

As she walked towards the door, she heard Jefferson muttering and crying,

“I’m sorry...so sorry...mistake…” She turned to see him in the fetal position on the floor as she threw the door open.

“Fuck you.” And with that she left the office.

 

**Max**

 

Max had just left the Deacon’s office, after filing a report against Jefferson when she saw a flash of blue in the corner of her eye. She turned her head to see Chloe, practically vibrating with rage, leaned against a wall with her fingers tugging at the roots of her hair.

“Chloe?” Max whispered, unsure that she would hear her from this distance.

But of course she did, Chloe’s lost eyes found Max’s and she ran at almost full speed down the length of the corridor into Max. She embraced her tightly, burying her face in Max’s shoulder. The tightness of her grip could almost have been painful, but they both needed to be closer than what was physically possible. They wouldn’t even be close enough to each other if they were the same person.

“Baby…” Chloe whispered, taking her hands to frame Max’s face, she pressed her forehead against her partner’s.

“I told you not to come.” Max said, once she had felt Chloe relax a little. She didn’t feel the need to ask Chloe why she was there, or what she’d been doing. She knew. And the fact that she was just a little ways outside of Jefferson’s office confirmed her suspicions.

“When have I ever been one to do as I’m told?” She said with a small smirk. Max took her hands and Chloe winced.

“Let me see,” Max tried to pull up Chloe’s right hand but she shook her head,

“No, no, I’m fine. It’s okay.” Chloe dismissed Max’s worry with a shrug of her shoulders.

“No you’re not, Chloe. You’re hurt. Now let me see.” 

Chloe held her right hand out and Max cringed. Chloe also noticed then what a mess she had made of it. She hadn’t felt the pain at the time as the rage was so blinding.

Her knuckles were swollen and a little bloody, with the blush of a bruise just flowering across them. He rings were uneven, the imprint of them embedded, red elsewhere on her fingers. But the pain flowered like a welcome reminder of the justice she had delivered. She would rather her own pain than Max’s.

Who, brought the hand to her lips and kissed her knuckles so delicately, looking into Chloe’s eyes the whole time.

“Come on, let’s go home.”

 

Over the coming weeks, it was found out that Mark Jefferson had sexually assaulted and/or harassed a totally of 7 of his female students. And although it didn’t feel like it, Max had escaped before the worst of it. One of the women, Victoria Chase, had been Jefferson’s victim for over a year, and raped by him on two separate occasions. When she and Max had met, she had embraced her and they found solidarity and friendship in each other, grateful for both of their strength. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is dedicated to those who have experienced or are experiencing still, the massive injustice of sexual harassment, abuse, or assault. You are not alone, and please tell someone. I know it's not easy, it wasn't for me. But you are strong, you are loved and there is a way out.


	24. Chloe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.
> 
> All Chloe this chapter, and it's going to be all Max for the final one.

**Chloe**

 

It was the beginning of March, and Chloe was now the official owner of the cafe. She and Max were sat at the same table they had been that morning in December, long after the shop had closed for the night. Max’s nose was buried deep in a beat-up copy of  _ Little Women  _ she had nabbed from the bookshelf, as Chloe scribbled down recipe ideas in her notebook. Music played softly from the radio behind the counter, Chloe felt content. And replayed the last 4 months in her head, she was now speaking to her Mom on a weekly basis, her relationship with Max only strengthened, and the coffee shop was booming. She hadn’t seen or heard from Rachel since the last time they spoke at Skip’s. And she missed her. She was still her best friend.

Max had spoken to Chloe a few days prior about how she thought it was a good idea to reach out to Rachel. She had stressed how important she felt it was for them to both have friends outside of the relationship, she had made several new friends through the situation with Jefferson and spending time with them was making her so happy. Chloe could tell, and she was happy something good had come of the shitty time. But Max was afraid that Chloe didn’t have anyone but her to confide in, to have fun with. And she didn’t think that was healthy. Chloe had agreed and admitted after much effort that she did miss Rachel.

“Vic just texted me, she asked if you still wanted her to start at 9 tomorrow?” Max broke Chloe from her thoughts, leaning her arm on Chloe’s shoulder, fiddling with a loose lock of freshly dyed blue hair. She had given Max’s new friend Victoria a job at the coffee shop, as they now had a little more money for more staff and to take over from Rachel, who hadn’t been to work since December.

“Yeah, that would be great, tell her thanks.” Max smiled and continued texting.

Their evenings like this were some of Chloe’s favourite times with Max, no pressure and barely any words but the two of them just enjoyed feeling the other’s presence. Chloe felt Max’s eyes on her from across the table, and Chloe felt a little joy in making her wait for her attention, she smiled inwardly before looking up to meet her eyes. When she held her gaze, it wasn’t the expression she expected. It wasn’t playful, it was trepedatious.

When Chloe shot her a questioning look she begged,

“Don’t kill me.” She said in a quiet voice before flicking her eyes over to the door of the cafe momentarily, inviting Chloe to do the same.

Stood just outside the glass door was Rachel. Her blonde hair let down blowing in the soft, early spring breeze, she was wearing her signature blue feather earring with jeans, a white linen shirt and a military style jacket. She looked like Rachel, perfectly put together and beautiful, of course. She gave a sad sort of half smile and raised her arm up slowly to wave. Chloe was flabbergasted, this was not what she had expected tonight, and if she was honest she was a little pissed off with Max. Not for contacting Rachel, but for doing it behind her back.

“I know you’re gonna be mad at me and we can talk about it later. Please for now, just sort things out with your friend.” Max had already gathered her things together and she squeezed Chloe’s shoulder as she spoke,

“I’ll leave you two alone, dinner will be ready when you get in.” Max’s maturity still took Chloe by surprise, she often forgot she was just 19. Chloe smiled tightly, and Max leaned down to where she was sat and pecked her on the lips. She wandered out of the coffee shop, letting Rachel in at the same time. 

Chloe didn’t look at Rachel until she sat at the table, in the spot where Max had been just a few moments before. Her face was painted with the usual makeup, she was the vision of perfection, but there was something in that that Chloe resented. She didn’t find her beauty attractive anymore, she found it forced. When she put on the clothes that she did, or styled her hair, or applied her makeup, it was all to make people think she was something she wasn’t. And Chloe was irritated by it, more than anything else. She wished she had the courage to be who she is. Even if she didn’t know what that was. She didn’t hate Rachel for this, she was just as lost as Chloe, it wasn’t her fault.

There was an element of relief that settled within Chloe, she was a little worried that when Rachel came back into her life she would be attracted to her again, and she didn’t want to be. She wanted Max, and all those romantic feelings towards Rachel were dead, this meeting had proved that to Chloe. She never doubted her feelings towards Max, she’d never been in love like this before, but a tiny, irrational part of her mind felt a little calmer now.

“So…” Chloe spoke first,

“Don’t be mad at Max, she only worries about you. And clearly wants what’s best for you.” Rachel’s voice held the tone it always did,

“I could never be mad at Max, not really.” Chloe replied, deadpan. A flicker of pain flashed across Rachel’s eyes, but she shook it off in an instant. If she was talking to anyone other than Chloe, they wouldn’t have noticed it.

“So how have you been?” Chloe didn’t do small talk, but she really had no idea what else to say at this point.

“Good, I’ve been good. I’m… I’m seeing someone.” Rachel stared at her knotted hands. This revelation was music to Chloe’s ears.

“That’s great Rach, what’s… their name?” Chloe was curious to know if it was going to be a man or a woman. But she didn’t want Rachel to think she was assuming anything.

“His names Frank, he owns the bar on Everett Street.” This was a surprise, a pleasant one at that. Frank Bowers was a good guy, Chloe knew him, and Rachel knew she did, the two of them were regulars at Frank’s. Chloe smiled, she really was happy for Rachel.

“He’s a good guy Rach, I’m happy for you.”

From then on they chatted for a while about the last couple of months, catching up as if nothing had gone wrong between them. But there was an elephant in the room, and they could both see it, it was just a matter of who was going to prod it first.

“...and the biggest news is that I own this place now, it was my Mom’s Christmas gift…”

“Wait, what?” Rachel interrupted,

“My Mom gave me the ownership to the cafe for Christmas, it’s officially been mine for around a month now.” Rachel had a strange look on her face. Chloe didn’t recognise it, which was odd because Chloe knew all of Rachel’s faces. 

There was a long silence.

“Dude, what is it?” Chloe laughed, confused,

“Nothing, it’s just. I wish I would’ve known about that.” Rachel used a small voice,

“Oh? You wish you’d have known?” Chloe couldn’t hide her irritation by that point,

“Chloe…” 

“No, Rachel, it’s my turn to talk,” This was it, she was going to let it all out. “I wish you’d have known too. But after the little tantrum you threw, I didn’t know if I’d ever fucking see you again. It tore me apart, I’ve never felt guilt like that, and you knew that’s what you were doing, you fucking knew, it wasn’t fair. Never mind that it was totally fucking unprofessional for you to leave me a staff member down without any warning. I want you in my life, but I don’t know if that’s going to be healthy if I’m constantly trying to keep up with all your dramatic bullshit. I know I might seem like I’m being mean, but I gotta put myself first for a change. My problems matter just as much as yours do and we can’t have any kind of relationship if you don’t get your head out of your ass and stop being so goddamn selfish.” 

Chloe breathed heavily. Her words hung in the air between them for a few silent seconds.

Rachel nodded. A tear escaped from her left eye but she looked up to meet Chloe’s gaze and nodded vigorously.

“You’re right, I’m sorry. I’m gonna try harder. I miss you, and you’re friendship is worth it. So I promise I’ll try.”

 

Their meeting had ended with a somewhat awkward hug as they both went there separate ways down the street outside the cafe. They had a long way to go. But she was sure they both felt a little better having made the first step. Chloe made a mental note to thank Max, she always seemed to know what was right for Chloe, even when she didn’t want to admit it herself.

She decided to walk home that day, hoping to clear her head a little. But once she started, it was clear. Her life was falling into place, and as she climbed the stairs to her apartment, towards Max and her home. There was no angst, no worry and no pain. Just happiness, and hope. Hope for a future better than her past.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last chapter before the epilogue. I'm getting a little emotional guys...


	25. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The final one, you're in Max's head for the conclusion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters and situations from the Life is Strange universe. I do not claim any ownership over characters or scenarios taken from Life is Strange, which is property of Dontnod Entertainment. This story is for entertainment purposes only.
> 
> Here we go...

**Max**

 

It was a cold December morning, the kind of morning with snow in the air. I wrapped my coat a little tighter around me as I wandered toward the coffee shop. The bell above the door chimed, and Chloe looked up from behind the counter.

Steam from the espresso machine clouded around her face, which was rosy, powdered lightly with flour. Her hair had grown, it escaped from her hair tie do fall around her face, waves of messy, curly blue framing her face. She beamed at me. That smile. It was like a heated knife in my heart, demanding to be felt, and I relished in it, it was the only thing I ever wanted to feel. I am so in love with her. Always will be.

“Hey baby.” She ran around the counter, swept me in her arms and kissed me soundly on the lips. I knew we were getting some smiles and looks from the few regulars that sat around us but I really couldn’t find it in me to care. Chloe in this mood was one of my favourite Chloes. Mind you, every Chloe was my favourite Chloe. But seeing her happy brought me a kind of unbridled joy that couldn’t be matched.

“Hey yourself, you’re in a good mood.”

“I’ve got a good life Maxine.” She said, answering every question. My eyes smiled at her. She was already back around the other side of the counter, serving more customers. Business was booming, and she was just going from strength to strength.

When Chloe’s rent came up at the end of the summer, we moved into our own tiny town-house only a couple of blocks from the cafe. Chloe had saved up enough money to put down a deposit, along with my savings left from my grandparents, and we moved in together late August. 

I loved our little house, and we decorated it in a way that represented the two of us, organic and artistic, but simple and raw, just like the two of us. And for my 20th birthday, she bought me Pancake.

Pancake was a small, rescue kitten she had gotten from the local rescue sanctuary. I’m not ashamed to say that I cried like a baby when she brought out this little, scruffy kitten and handed her over to me. She became my best friend, and I think Chloe was a little jealous for a while because I gave Pancake way more cuddles than I gave her. She made our little home feel complete.

I had a morning off class today, so I spent it helping out in the coffee shop like I always did. And for me, helping out was defined as sorting through and editing my photos, along with reading my way through the bookshelf that still resided at the back of the cafe. I found the copy of Atonement I had been making a dent in, and placed it on my table in the corner of the room, and quickly glanced around me. The scent of incense mingled with the freshly ground coffee, and immediately relaxed me. The lights were glowing a yellowish halo that reflected on the shiny hardwood floors, and contrasted against the cool light coming through the huge bay windows. Soft indie-rock played as it always did and people laughed or talked quietly in their own separate groups. I watched Chloe do what she does best behind the counter, teasing the new baristas she had recently hired while teaching them how to make the her newest latte recipes. The photo collage I had made for Chloe hung on the wall behind the counter, along with my winning photo from the Everyday Heroes contest and all of her local food awards she had won over the last few months, I was proud of her. And I was proud of us.

With warm memories of Chloe floating around my head, I got stuck in to my book.

 

“Order up for Maxine!” Chloe’s voice rang out, breaking me from my story. I hadn’t ordered anything, I figured she must have just made me a mocha,

“Hey Captain, it's Max, never Maxine.” I replied facetiously, gaining me a wink in return.

As I approached the counter, I was a little suspicious. She hadn’t gone back to making more orders, but simply watching me come towards her. And now mentioning it, everybody else had stopped to watch us too. I was looking into her eyes, that twinkled with mischief while I picked up the cup,

“Chloe...What are you…?” Then I heard it, the clatter of metal inside the cup.

I looked down, and didn’t see a cup full of her delicious mocha, instead there was a ring at the bottom of the coffee cup. I couldn’t breathe. I just stared at it for an unknown amount of time. I just held the cup in my hands and stared at it.

“Max Caulfield.” I looked up at her, her eyes suddenly tender and soft, “When you walked into my life a year ago, you not only changed it for the better, but you changed it for good. You’ve made me a better person, and for that I can never repay you. But...I’m hoping you’ll let me try. I’ll spend my whole life trying to make you as happy as you make me. You are the love of my life. Will you marry me?” Tears streaked down my face. She had completely taken my breath away, and it took me some time to collect my thoughts.

“Come on man, you’re killing me here.” She chuckled breathlessly. I smiled widely and nodded my head.

“Of fucking course I’m saying yes, you idiot.” I laughed, overjoyed, through my tears.

She jumped over the counter, took the cup from me and held the ring between shaking fingers. It was a small, delicate ring of gold and a round green stone, framed by intricately designed tiny gold leaves. It was unique and beautiful. She knew me so well, I absolutely adored it.

She slid it on my finger, and held my face between her hands. We each looked at each other with watery eyes.

We kissed deeply and shared the joy between the two of us.

 

“Not the first thing I expected to find in my coffee cup.” I would tell her that evening when we were curled up on our couch.

“Was it really cliche?” She screwed her face up anxiously,

“Yeah, but it was perfect.”

“Kinda like me, huh?” 

“You’re a perfect storm, Chloe Price. One that I can’t wait to ride out. Forever.”

 

The End.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this final chapter, as always please let me know your thoughts.  
> I've had an absolute blast writing this fic and the fact it has been so well received is just the cherry on the cake.  
> Thank you guys for everything, for sharing this Max and Chloe with me for a while and being so kind to them (and me).  
> If you're interested, I do have a new story in the works, it's called The Far Away Here and Now, the first 2 chapters are already up, so if you guys want to check that one out, that would be brilliant. I'm putting a lot of effort into it and it is taking a little longer to get the chapters out but please go give it a read if you have the time.  
> Anyway, I'll stop rambling now. But thank you guys, I couldn't have asked for better readers.  
> Hannah x


End file.
